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LIBRARY 'OF eOMGRESS. 



miti)fA^IM^x4i^ lu*- 

■ Slielf J..^-^^"^^ • 

TJNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



U^ 



B^Si^';?4('^ll^%e^j»-fii.<i!^j;?^^^^^ • '> -: V*^ '; 




KAM-NK-B(IT-Si:. 

{Blackfoot.) 

[Froiitii^piece.] 



ECHE-HAS-KO. 

{Lon;/ Hnrxc.) 

CUO W C II 1 !■: I'S. 



TE-SHUN-NZS. 

( White Calf.) 
\ See page IZO. 



AB-SA-RA-KA; 

OK, 

WYOMING OPENED: 

BEING 

THE EXPEEIENCE OF AN OFFICEE'S WIFE ON 

THE PLAINS y^. 



WITH AN 



OUTLINE OF INDIAN OPERATIONS AND CONFERENCES 
Since 1865. 



BY 

COL. HENEY B. CAEEINGTON, U.S.A., 

AUTHOR OF "battles OF THE AMERICAN BEVOLUTION. 



^^SEVENTH EDITION OF MRS. CAKRINGTON'S NARRATIVE.) 



REVISED, ENLARGED, AND ILLUSTRATED AVITH MAPS, 
CUTS, INDIAN PORTRAITS, ETC. 



PHILADELPHIA: 

J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY. 

London : 10 Henrietta Street, Covent Garden 
1 896. 






It 



;3t^vs- 



Entered, according to the Act of Congress, in the year 1868, by 
J. B. LIPPINCOTT & CO., 

In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States in and 
for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. 



Copyright, 1878, by Col. Henry B. Carrington, U.S.A. 



Copyright, 1896, by Col. Henry B. Carrington. !X*^ 



^^mm. 



/ 

DEDICATION. 



"With acknowledgments to Lieutenakt-General Sher- 
man, whose suggestions at Fort Kearney, in the spring of 
1866, were adopted, in preserving a daily record of the 
events of a peculiarly eventful journey, and whose vigorous 
policy is as promising of the final settlement of Indian 
troubles and the quick completion of the Union Pacific 
Sailroad as his '■'■March to the Sea" was signal in crushing 
the last hope of armed rebellion, this narrative is respect- 
fully dedicated. 

MAKGARET IRVIN CAKEINGTON 



PREFACE TO SIXTH EDITION. 



Wyoming, long recognized by the Interior De- 
partment as " Absaraka," will soon be a State. Its 
original opening for settlement is correctly given in 
this volume. A full report of its mineral, agricul- 
tural, and other natural resources, made in 1866, and 
that of the massacre, three times called for by the 
United States Senate^ finally appeared in 1887 in 
Senate Executive Document 33, Fiftieth Congress. 

The Eeport of the Fort Phil Kearney Massacre, 
now in Appendix II., was long suppressed. Neither 
Custer, Dodge, nor Dunn had the materials for a 
correct historical relation. The hasty report of 
Major-General Philip St. George Cooke, who was 
promptly removed from command by Lieutenant- 
General Sherman, is valueless, from its ignorance of 
his own orders and despatches. 

The conference with the Ogallalla Sioux in 1867, 
referred to by Custer, is given in full from the origi- 
nal notes in my possession. 

It is time that the fostered false impressions as to 
Indian operations, 1866-70, be corrected by authentic 
records. 

HENEY B. CAREINGTON, 

U.S.A. {Retired). 

Hyde Park, Mass., March 2, 1890. 

(iii) 



PRKFACK TO THIRD HDITION. 



Absauaka had indood a trasjic o|ioniiiir to Hcfilt*- 
mcnt. Tlio diHaHtor winch in 1870 robbed the army 
of twelvo officers and two hundred and forty-seven 
brave men, was l)ut the sequel to that series of en- 
counters which first reached the world through the 
tragedy of 186G. It is now of even more importance 
to know the country which depends so much upon 
armed force for its settlement and the solution of 
the Indian controversy. 

During January, 1876, General Custer said to the 
writer, " It will take another Phil Kearney massa- 
cre to bring Congress up to a generous supjmrt of 
the army." Within six months, his memory, like 
that of Fetterman, became monumental through a 
similar catastrophe. Witli larger experience on the 
frontier, — for Fetterman had none, — but with equal 
faith in the ability of white troops to handle a 
largely superior force of Indians, fearless, bravo, and 
a matchless rider, Custer had also the conviction that 
the army was expected to fight the hostile savage 
under all circumstances and at every opportunity. 

A brief outline of events, embod^-ing operations 
in that country up to the present time, will have 
value to all who watch our dealings with the Jndiiins 
of the Northwest. 

1* (v) 



vi PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION. 

The introductory map was deemed sufficiently 
definite by Generals Custer and Brisbin to take with 
them for reference, and its present form includes the 
additional forts and agencies, as furnished by the 
favor of General Humphreys, Chief of United States 
Engineers. 

The itinerary of Chapter XXX. has permanent 
value. The first military occupation of that country 
is also accurately presented in the original text. 
There never was a more ill-considered impulse of 
tiie American people than that which forced the army 
into the Powder River and Big Horn countries in 
1866, to serve the behests of irresponsible speculative 
emigration, regardless of the rights of tribes right- 
fully in possession. There never was a wilder grab 
for gold than the succeeding dash into the Black 
Hills in the face of solemn treaties. 

The compensations of time bring to the surface 
the fruits of unsound policy, and the treaties of 
1866, at Laramie — a mere sham so far as they con- 
cerned the tribes beyond — have ripened. The fruit 
has been gathered. Honored dead bear witness. I 
stated distinctly, at the time of the. massacre, that if 
that line should be broken up it would require four 
times the force to reopen it ; and since then more 
thousands of troops have been wi-estling with the 
issue than hundreds were then employed for its pro- 
tection. Of the struggle for the Big Horn country 
an impression was embodied in one earnest para- 
graph : " While there bas been partial success in 
impromptu dashes, the Indian, now desperate and 
bitter, looks upon the rash white man as a sure 



PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION. vii 

victim no less than he does a coward, and the 
United States must come to the deliberate resolve 
to send an army equal to a fight with the Indians 
of the Northwest. Better to have the expense at 
once, than to have a lingering, provoking war, for 
years. It must be met, and the time is just now." 
But the force was not available for that purpose, and 
a lingering, provoking war, for years, has followed. 

There is no glory in Indian war. If too little be 
done, the West complains ; if too much be done, the 
East denounces the slaughter of the red man. Justice 
lies between the extremes, and herein lies the merit 
of that Indian policy which was inaugurated during 
the official term of President Grant. So much of 
falsehood mingled with fact, and so keen was the 
popular scent for some scapegoat at the first public 
announcement of a war which had been constant for 
six months, that even now the public mind retains 
but a vague impression of the lessons of that mas- 
sacre. It has indeed required another fearful tragedy 
to invoke an examination into the relations of the 
American people toward these Indian tribes, and to 
solve the problem whether a Christian nation will 
exercise patience, restrain wrong, and yet do what 
is right by both races. 

To place a new edition of Absaraka before the 
public is no hasty offering for transient effect, but to 
give the world historical facts, many of them other- 
wise unnoticed, and thus aid them to appreciate the 
vicissitudes of frontier army life. 

The writer has little change to suggest in the Nar- 
rative text, although nearly ton years have elapsed 



viii PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION. 

since it was first written. The accompanying new 
matter, and notes, will enable the reader to follow 
other operations in the valleys of Powder, Tongue, 
Big Horn, and Yellowstone rivei's, while the addi- 
tional map includes territory as far north as the 
British Possessions, and the future battle-field region, 
if Indians invade from Canada. 

The portraits illustrate styles of Indian dress, 
while introducing the leading chiefs who figure in 
the Narrative, and are known, by name, to the entire 
people of the United States. 

It is no weak incentive to the enlargement of this 
record that the sacrifice of Fetterman, Brown, Custer, 
Bradley, and their associates, is kept in memory, while 
tribute is ever paid to her whose life so soon passed 
away after the trials of that unexpected and extreme 
exposure. 

HENEY B. CARRINGTON 



Wabash Collkqe, Crawfordsville, Ind. 
May, 1878. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

PAOl 

Al>saraka, Home of the Crows 13 

CHAPTER II. 
Absaraka described 20 

CHAPTER III. 
The Natural History and Climate of Absaraka 29 

CHAPTER IV. 
Organization of the Expedition to Absaraka 36 

CHAPTER V. 

From Fort Kearney to crossing of Union Pacific Rail- 
road — Incidents of the Platte River Travel — Reunion 
of the Officers of the 18th Infantry — Crossing the Ridi- 
culous Platte 45 

CHAPTER VI. 
Reminiscences of Ranching, and old times on the route 
from Leavenworth to Sedgwick 55 

CHAPTER VII. 

Dnion Pacific Railroad to Laramie — Court-house Rock — 
Chimney Rock — Fortification Rock — Scott's Bluffs — 
Wonderful Fishing— Visit of Standing Elk 64 

(ix) 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

PAOB 

Port Laramio Council of 1866 — Its results foreshadowed 
— The Aborigines in the marts of trade — How the In- 
dians did and did not 73 

CHAPTEE IX. 

Laramie to Reno — Camp Phistercr Canon — Laramie Peak 
—Wild Flora— Pumpkin Buttes 82 

CHAPTER X. 

Fort Reno — Indian Raid — Fort Laramie Treaty tested — 
Fourth of July in Absaraka — Organization of Mount- 
ain District — Onward Movement — More Rattlesnakes — 
Mercury 113° above zero — What it did 93 

CHAPTER XI. 
Reconnoissances — Indian messengers — Warnings — Loca- 
tion of Fort Philip Kearney — Conduct of the troops, 
and its cause 102 

CHAPTER XII. 

Arrival of Indians — The Cheyennes in council — Black 
Horse, The Rabbit that Jumps, Red Sleeve, Dull Knife, 
and others have much talk and "heap of smoke" 110 

CHAPTER XIII. 
Massacre of Louis Gazzou's party — Indian raid and great 
loss of mules — The Cheyennes again — Forty hostile de- 
monstrations of the " ])eaceablc tribes " — The Laramie 
Treaty incidentally tested — Massacre of Lieutenant 
Daniels — A fighting parson 119 

CHAPTER XIV. 
Conduct of the Crow Indians — What Bridger and Beck- 
with say 130 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER XV. 



PAOB 



Visit of Inspector-General Hazen — Eeinforcements on 
the way — Mounted Infantry compared with Sioux Light 
Cavalry — United States mails — Corral system — Timber 
and lumber supplied to order 134 

CHAPTER XVI. 

Fort Philip Kearney and surroundings — A picnic — As- 
cent of the mountains — Lake Smodt — Fine scenery — 
Plan of the fort 14J 

CHAPTER XVII. 

Two holidays — October inspection and review — First gar- 
rison flag hoisted in Absaraka — Incidents of the day — 
Indian response to a national salute — Looking-glasses 
in abundance — Evening levee 15C 

CHAPTER XVIII. 
A day of incidents — Hostile Sioux and friendlj' Chey- 
ennes — Narrow escape of the latter — Our picket mim- 
icked — More massacres — Croquet introduced into Ab- 
saraka 157 

CHAPTER XIX. 
Night scenes — Celestial and terrestrial visitors — Aurora — 
Lunar rainbow — Meteorites — Indians all in their war- 
paint 164 

CHAPTER XX. 

Domestic, social, and religious life, with the episodes 
therein occurring 173 

CHAPTER XXI. 
Indian warfare — Things a woman can learn when she has 
seen them tried 18C 



xii CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER XXII. 

PAOI 

Indian arms, habits, and customs — Tho arrow beats the 
revolver 18T 

CHAPTER XXIII. 
Massacre of Lieutenant Bingham — Accounts given by 
officers — Extracts from journal 194 

CHAPTER XXIV. 
Fetterman's massacre — Its lessons 200 

CHAPTER XXV. 

The funeral — Burial of fourscore and one victims of tho 
massacre — Cold and sad holidays — Expeditions aban- 
doned — Reinforcements of August yet behind 211 

CHAPTER XXVI. 
Comedj^'of errors — Enterprise of tho press — Transactions 
in Absaraka mysteriously known to the public before 
they had information of the same 218 

CHAPTER XXVII. 

New Year's changes— 1867 — March to Fort Reno — Mer- 
cury 40° below zero — How it felt and what it did 226 

CHAPTER XXVIII. 

Fort Reno to Fort Caspar — Thence to tho United States 
— Courtesies of tho route — Visits of dignitaries, mili- 
tary, civil, and Indian, at McPherson — More changes.. 237 

CHAPTER XXIX. 
In mcmoriam 244 

CHAPTER XXX. 
Omaha to Virginia City, Montana 250 



CONTENTS. xiii 

CHAPTER XXXI. 

PAQB 

Indian affairs on the Plains — Incidents of 1865-7 — 
Treaty Conflicts — Laramie treaty a substantial failure 
— The Phil Kearney massacre enlarged the theatre of 
war — Volunteers discharged — Pawnees enlisted — Af- 
fairs on the Platte — Visit from Spotted Tail and others 
— Incidents of the visit — Indian Commissioners 259 

CHAPTER XXXII. 

Indian affairs on the Plains — Incidents of 1867 — "The 
Whistler," "Pawnee Killer," "Little Bull," and 
other chiefs in council at Fort McPherson — Visit of 
Lieutenant-Colonel Custer — General Sherman's views 
of the demands of ranchemen — Visit of Mr. William 
Blackmore, of London 271 

CHAPTER XXXIII. 

Indian affairs on the Plains — Incidents, 1867-73 — Re- 
newed raids in Big Horn region — Red Cloud's Ultima- 
tum in 1867 — Action of Congress — General Augur as 
to the posts — Army trials — New treaties — New com- 
missioners — General Sheridan as to tho animus of the 
Army — The whole frontier attacked — War with Arra- 
pahoes, Cheyennes, and Kiowas — Fights of Custer, For- 
sythe, and others — First conferences — Sitting Bull 
rejects the overtures of Red Cloud — Quiet in 1872 — 
The treaties of 1868 prove beneficial — Custer's fight on 
the Yellowstone, in 1873 — His report considered — Old 
Fort Kearney abandoned — Specia^ reminiscences of its 
career 289 

CHAPTER XXXIV. 

Indian affairs on the Plains — Incidents from 1874 to 1877 
— Indians can keep faith — Hostilities of 1874 — Colonel 



Xiv CONTENTS, 

PAQB 

Miles on Red Eiver — Bishop Whipple as to captives 
sent to Florida — White men at fault — Chief " White 
Head" on profane swearing — Custer's expedition to the 
Black Hills — General Terry suppresses citizen emigra- 
tion — Professor Marsh, of Yale College, at Red Cloud 
Agency — Raids in 1875 — Lieutenant-Colonel Dodge 
Surveys the Black Hills — Lieutenant-Colonel Forsythe 
ascends the Yellowstone — Official reports of the year — 
Campaign of 1876 opened — Colonel Reynolds destroys 
camp of Crazy Horse — Fearful exposure of the troops 
— Official reports — Suggestions to critics — Complimen- 
tary order of department commander — General Crook's 
fight on Rosebud Creek — General Sherman's report — 
River distances on the Yellowstone given — General 
Terry takes the field — Custer's massacre — General Sher- 
idan concentrates the army — Colonel Miles pursues 
Sitting Bull — General Crook drives Crazy Horse to the 
Black Hills — Crows vent their hatred on the Sioux — 
Army officers put in charge of the Indian Agencies 308 

CHAPTER XXXV. 

Indian afliiirs on the Plains — Incidents of 1877 — Policy 
of the General of the Army — Opinion of Senator Lane 
and others — Effect of Custer's massacre — New forts in 
the Big Horn region — Military object of those first 
built — Colonel Miles routs Crazy Horse — Fight on 
Muddy Creek fork of the Rosebud — Crazy Horse sur- 
renders — Agencies re-located — Conference with Sitting 
Bull — Commissioner Shanks as to Chief Joseph — The 
Nez Perces campaign, in detail — Operations of Howard, 
Gibbon, Sturgis, Miles, and others — Capture of Joseph, 
in battle — His character — His intercourse with General 
Shanks — Colonel Sturgis's report noticed 386 

CHAPTER XXXVI. 

Honor to whom honor — Wrongs done the Indian — The 
conduct of the army — Report of Colonel Manypenny, 



CONTENTS. XV 

PAOB 

Commissioner — His tribute to Generals Sherman, Har- 
ney, and others — The " Ten Commandments and the 
Sword" in the hands of civilization — Survivors of the 
operations of 186G — The 7th Cavalry at the end of 
1877 — The Crow Indians of Ab-sa-ra-ka remembered. 355 



Appendix I. — Special Senate documents on Phil Kear- 
ney massacre 361 

Appendix II. — Colonel Carrington's oflBcial report of 
the Phil Kearney massacre 372 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 



Map No. I. South of 46° North Latitude. 
Map No. II. North of 46° North Latitude. 
Cro"w Chiefs Frontispiece 

PAGB 

Court-Housb Kock 67 

Chimney Kock 68 

Hb-ha-ka-a-na-zin, Standing Elk (Dacotah Sioux) 72'/ 

Camp Phisterer Canon 84 

East View of the North Platte 86 

Laramie Peak, from the North 89 

Battle Decoration of Buffalo Kobe 129 v^ 

Plan of Eort Phil Kearney 147 

Tepee, or Tepah (Indian Lodge) 193V^ 

Surroundings of Fort Phil Kearney 204 

La-hic-ta-pa-la-sha, Pipe Chief (Pawnee) 264- p"' 

Pe-ta-la-sha-ra, Pawnee Chief (Choweb Band)... 265 >/ 

CiN-TE-GI-LE-SKA, SPOTTED TAIL AND HIS SqUAW 

(BrulJ: Sioux) 269 

Red Cloud and Mr. Blackmorb, of London 288^ 

2* (xvii) 



PROLOGUE TO FIRST EDITION. 



The importunity of friends, who have been interested 
in the journal of a summer's trip and a winter's experi- 
ence on the Plains, and which, as a matter of taste, 
now assumes the more easy flow of Narrative, has over- 
ruled the first refusal to permit its use in more available 
form for their leisurely reading. Gathering many of 
its details from officers of the posts, from Major James 
Bridger, and others, and so gathering as each day's 
experience unfolded events of interest, there is no as- 
sumption of anything further than to express the facts 
so recorded just as they were impressed upon the judg- 
ment or fancy. 

If, on the one hand, the recital of military prepara- 
tions or movements be so inartificial as to excite the 
smile of the critic, or if the natural tendency to adopt 
the idioms and style which, every way and forever, 
surround the wife of an officer, shall seem so con- 
strained as to repel the lady reader, it can only be said 
that we wrote, when we wrote, just as the surround- 
ings inspired or compelled us. 

In this change from the form of a journal we have 
adhered to its record, and preserved the integrity of the 
original, so as to reproduce our life as it was lived and 
give incidents as they transpired 

(xix) 



XX PROLOGUE. 

While nearly one-half of the Indian demonstrations 
were under our own eye, the authentic reports of others 
were of equal value to history; and the narrative differs 
little from what would be the written experience of 
others, except that we availed ourselves more fully of 
classes of facts and sources of knowledge equally open 
to all, and so cherished their record, as in earlier life 
we garnered up details of a first visit to Mammoth Cave 
or the Falls of Niagara. 

If our statistics and statements as to Indian coun- 
cils, usages, or raids, or the record of labor, casualties, 
and incidents, savor much of routine, yet through in- 
cidental form we have gathered historical facts, and 
thus do we present our life and the exact history of 
the first year of the military occupation of Absaraka. 

And again ; if there be a savor of whining because 
the soldiers were so few and support was unfurnished, 
it will not be taken as criticism to offend anybody, since 
everybody knows how small was the army, and how 
incapable of immediate expansion to meet the issues of 
the Northwestern frontier at the close of the war. 

So, then, our friends will accept this response to their 
wishes, and at least gather instruction for their guid- 
ance when they undertake their first visit to Absaraka, 
Home of the Crows. 



AB-SA-RA-KA. 



CHAPTER I. 

ABSABAKA, HOME OF THK CROWS. 

Absaraka, in the language of the Crow In- 
dians, translated, Home of the Crows, was once 
the field of their proudest successes. 

'^The fertile basins of the Yellowstone, Big 
Horn, and Tongue Rivers were enlivened by 
the presence of their many villages; and in the 
early days of Bridger and Beckwith, the Crow 
Indians accumulated considerable wealth by a 
prolific trade in pelts and dressed furs, which 
those veteran trappers and frontiersmen delivered 
for them at St. Louis and other border depots 
for Indian commerce. 

Partially girt in by the Big Horn and Panther 
Mountains, yet roaming at will, they were 
masters of a region of country which has no 
peer in its exhaustless game resources, and is 
rarely surpassed in its production of wild fruits, 

2 (13) 



14 ABSAEAKA. 

grasses, and cereals; while its natural scenery, 
made up of snowy crests, pine-clad slopes and 
summits, crystal waters, and luxuriant vales, 
certainly has no rival in our great sisterhood of 
States. 

The Snake Indians, who roamed farther north 
and west, and who had even crossed lances 
with the Pagans and Bloods, on the confines of 
British America, were unable, man for man, to 
match their more numerous and more adven- 
turous rivals, the Crows, and at last, in 1856, 
joined friendly hands with them, or at least ob- 
served a fair neutrality in the later conflicts of 
the Crows with their hereditary and deadly ene- 
mies, the Sioux and Northern Cheyennes. 

' Wh^n the Cheyennes of the Black Hills of 
Eastern Dakota divided their bands, and one 
portion went to the Red River countr}^, while 
another portion left the old home, with nearly 
half of the remaining families, for Powder River 
and Tongue River valleys, the Ogillalla Sioux at 
last found allies to support their operations 
against the Crows. With a portion of the 
Arrapahoes, Blackfeet, and Gros Ventres of the 
Prairie, popularly known as the Big Bellies, 
they prosecuted the war with vigor and unre- 
lenting hatred. Breaking into the long-coveted 
region about which they had been testing their 
valor for years in fruitless forays and uncertain 
adventures, the Sioux, aided by their new friends, 



UOME OF THE CROWS. 15 

Bucceeded in occupying the choice valleys of the 
lower Big Horn and Tongue Rivers,/and still 
held them in comparative independence when 
the expedition of 1866, sent to open the new 
route to Virginia City, forced them to accept the 
challenge of the white man for the future posses- 
sion of their stolen dwelling-place. 

The Crows fell back of the Yellowstone, 
though still operating eastward as far as the 
west bank of Big Horn River; and a few at- 
tempted something like local improvement, imi- 
tating the Flat Heads, who, though few of 
numbers, were not the less energetic, and seemed 
to be really desirous of gaining some affinity with 
the ideas and civilization of the whites. 

With all these changes and the continued ag- 
gression of the Sioux, the Crows maintained 
their passion for their old and their favorite 
home. It had its peculiar virtues. At once 
grand and beautiful, prolific in game beyond all 
precedent, susceptible of culture and the de- 
velopment of vast mineral wealth, while offering 
a new avenue for travel to Montana nearly five 
hundred miles shorter than that by Salt Lake 
City, how can it be deemed strange that they 
looked upon that redundancy of game, that ex- 
ceeding fertility, and that natural forage, as 
wonderfully adapted for their perpetual home 
and abiding-place ! 

The white man had given it no distinctive 



16 ABSARAKA. 

name, and iiad scarcely trespassed upon its soil. 
Farther west, he had occupied the Madison and 
Jefferson branches and the head waters of the 
Missouri. Flourishing towns and cities had 
been located, and the Indians, who had so long 
been driven westward, were now crowded bacft 
upon the Yellowstone and Big Horn; so that th« 
Crows must soon renew their active antagonism 
with their old plunderers, or seek other fields oi 
methods of life. 

This great hunting sphere, though nameless, 
had a natural independence both of Montana 
and Dakota, while attached in part to each. 
All that lies east of Black Foot and Clarke's 
Passes had its special relation to the territory 
extending as far as Powder Elver. Somebody 
had indeed ventured to style this country 
Wyoming, a name which might do very well for 
a county of Pennsylvania, but had the least 
claim for application to the stolen land of the 
Crows. 

These same Crow Indians, in addition to their 
natural title to the land, maintain, to this day, 
the proud claim never to have killed a white man 
but in self-defense. All their intercourse in 1866, 
and their relations in 1867, combine to show the 
integrity of their friendship and the truth of 
their protestations./ 

Their very enemies concede to them the right- 
ful title to the territory so long struggled for. 



HOME OF THE CROWS. 17 

At a formal council held at Fort Philip Kearney 
in July, 1866, between Colonel Carrington and 
certain Cheyenne chiefs, who were then in close 
relations with Red Cloud and other OgillaUa 
Sioux, but desirous of breaking loose from the 
tie, that they might receive protection from the 
whites, the following question was addressed to 
Black Horse : 

" Why do the Sioux and Cheyennes claim the land 
which belongs to the Grows?" 

Black Horse, The Wolf that Lies Down, 
Red Arm, and Dull Knife promptly answered : 

"jTAe Sioux helped us. We stole the hunting- 
grounds of the CroiDs because they were the best. The 
white man is along the great ivaters, and we wanted 
more room. We fight the Crows ^ because they will not 
take half and give us peace with the other half." , 

Absaraka is therefore in fact, as the Crows 
have fondly named that whole region (absurdly 
styled "Wyoming by some), the "Home of the 
Crows." 

Bound to it by sacred legends; endeared as it 
is by years of occupation and wasting conflicts 
for its repossession ; pressed by the whites from 
the west, and now approached from the east, 
yet restricted to the use of the Upper Yellow- 
stone and west bank of the Big Horn Rivers, 
the Crows still maintain their rightful title, and 
ask of the white man that he acknowledge it. 

No less firmly do they maintain inviolate their 
2* 



18 ABSARAKA. 

solemn faitli once pledged to the white man, and 
they look to his advent, in sufficient numbers, as 
the signal of their own deliverance and the de- 
struction of their old enemies the Sioux. 

Ready to co-operate with the whites — kindly dis- 
posed toivard the new road — beginning to appre- 
ciate the fate of the red man who shall oppose 
the progress of civilization and frontier settle- 
ment, they regard with something like hope 
the strong arm of that progress, and stand ready 
to perpetuate their own life by a just conformity 
to its reasonable demands. 

There is another fact which appeals strongly 
to other sentiments than those that favor simple 
justice. 

Among all the tribes of the Northwest, the 
Crow Indian stands first in manliness and phys- 
ical perfection. 

While they alone have the title to negotiate 
the right of way for the New Virginia City road, 
independently of its occupation by the Sioux and 
their allies, they also have pride of race and 
nation. They can be trusted as friends within its 
boundaries whenever they are treated with the 
consideration they deserve. Would white men 
do more? 

The Crows lost possession by robber3\ Their 
enemies have become the white man's enemy. 
Their enemies have ignored treaty obligations, 
nave despised all terms of compromise or honor- 



HOME OF THE CROWS. 19 

a.'le warfare, and defy the Crows and white man 
alike. 

To the Crow, therefore, should be tendered 
support and friendship. "Whatever the result as 
to the possession of the soil, it is as wicked to 
give it to the Sioux, for fear of his enmity, as it 
is to rob the Crows, if they wish to retain or 
jointly enjoy it. 

Above all, the land should bear its true name, 
and thus give to posterity some index to its past 
history and the issues and struggles which have 
preceded its use by the white man. Let it be 
known, whether as Territory, State, or Indian 
Reservation, as Absaraka, Home of the Crows. 

Serein, honor is rendered to noble red men, 
for such these are! Herein, justice is done to the 
Crow nation, which has hardly been less honor- 
able and true to their friendship than the Nara- 
gansetts, the Delawares, and the Pawnees. Herein, 
shall be established a memorial name that will 
connect with the last supremacy of the red man 
a tribute to those who were truly worthy; and 
past injustice shall be partially atoned for, in 
giving to the Crow Indians this perpetual re- 
cognition in the land of Absaraka, the Home 
of the Crows. 



20 ABSARAKA. 



CHAPTER II. 



ABSABAKA DESCBIBES. 



This land of the largest liberty for the red 
man and the chase is as varied in surface and 
general features as it is attractive to the various 
tribes that have contended for its possession. 

I^early all maps, and even the experience of 
Major James Bridger, the chief guide of the ex- 
pedition of 1866, and that of Mr. Brannan, an 
assistant guide, who was with General Connor 
in 1865, so far as he advanced in the valley 
of Tongue River, fail to furnish such data as to 
afford an adequate judgment of this region and 
its capacity for future development. 

All guides and scouts very naturally fix their 
attention upon points where water and grazing 
can be found by emigrants in transitu; but they 
do not as often generalize the result of these 
varied adventures, and fix the relations of diverse 
soils and geographical features to the purposes of 
advancing civilization and general settlement. 

And yet, as the army and people have been 
released from the engrossing interests of a great 
domestic war, and the failure of the Laramie 
treaty of 1866, with its immediate succession of 



ABSARAKA DESCRIBED. 21 

hostilities to every foot of progress over the route 
claimed to have been guaranteed by that treaty, 
have turned the attention of the national Con- 
gress and the national army to this new field of 
fight, it will be found that no portion of the pub- 
lic domain, heretofore almost terra-incognita, will 
challenge a greater public favor when its ele- 
ments of value are known. 

Not that it will prove a paradise for mere ad- 
venturers who aspire after good and sudden 
riches at the expense of the substantial develop- 
ment of the lands they traverse and prospect; 
but this idea is founded upon the basis of actual 
settlement, and the ultimate adoption of Absa- 
raka into the great family of American States. 

And yet, it is true that even the adventurer 
"will find a field of promise. Every creek, from 
Clear Fork to the Upper Yellowstone, gives gold 
color, and there is no doubt that patient, well- 
directed labor will realize fair returns. Certain 
it is, that but for the Indian hostilities — engen- 
dered partly by bad faith exercised toward some 
of their bands ; partly by excessive intimacy, de- 
grading to both the white and red man, and re- 
sulting in the ultimate vengeance of the latter 
when he learns the drift of such intimacy ; partly 
by failure to support the Indians who deserve 
support; and especially by failure to punish those 
who were incorrigibly wicked and ugly — the new 
route, so short, and in the main so fruitful in sup- 



22 ABSAIiAKA. 

plies for tlie emigrant, would become a favorite 
with all travelers to Eastern and Lower Montana. 

Of course it has its supposed rivals. Salt 
Lake City, so beautiful in location, with its 
shaded avenues, its ever-flowing fountains, and 
lavish soil, cannot cheerfully spare from its mar- 
kets the long trains which have made the circuit 
by its route; and everybody who owns a light- 
draught steamer will willingly transport from St. 
Louis, Nebraska City, or Omaha, as many pas- 
sengers as the capacity of his cabin or the stage 
of river moisture will permit; but the mathe- 
matical difficulty of making the hypothenuse of 
an acute angled triangle greater than the sum of 
the sides is a never-failing embarrassment to 
either party, and the question of distance re- 
mains as nature established it. 

The honest stranger who seeks a home in 
Lower Montana, and a short reliable route to 
Bozeman City, the Gallatin Valley, and Jeffer- 
son City, and the agricultural or mineral districts 
of that region, desires more definite information 
of the land to which his thoughts turn; and not 
only the people of Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, 
Illinois, and Indiana, but those of more eastern 
States, are pushing their trains across the plains, 
looking in vain, as they have long looked, for 
some definite details of the route they are to 
traverse. 

It is not always convenient, each day, for the 



ABSARAKA DESCRIBED. 23 

emigrant to depend upon some transient ran- 
chero or squatter for information aa to the next 
grass, timber, or water along the route; and it 
is therefore of practical value for the traveler to 
have a definite outline of the country before fur- 
nishing such details as specify the route, with its 
history, resources, and supplies. 

The geographical outline of Absaraka is special 
and full of interest. 

The general course of the Big Horn Mountains 
is from southeast to northwest, until it reaches 
the Big Horn River, when the direction changes 
westward; but the Big Horn Mountains proper 
die out before reaching the Upper Yellowstone 
River and Clark's and Blackfoot Passes, yet only 
a short distance from the former. 

At the lower or southeastern terminus, the 
range doubles back upon itself to the southwest, 
in form not unlike a Big Horn or cornucopia, 
and gives significance to its name, although the 
"Big Horn" of the mountain sheep is credited 
as source of the title. 

Of course it is presumed that the reader has 
gained some knowledge of the course of the 
Platte, and entertains at least general ideas of 
the routes to Salt Lake City by way of Denver, 
Fort Bridger, or Forts Laramie and Caspar. 

While this narrative will embrace directions 
for the traveler, even from the South Platte, and 
especially after the journey leaves the line of the 



24 ABSARAKA 

Union Pacific Railroad, with all the dcfinitenesa 
needed for daily practical use, it does not re- 
quire, in this general description of Absaraka, 
that those elements should be noticed at present. 

Omitting, therefore, all branches of the Big 
Cheyenne, and all tributaries of either Fork of 
the Platte, the general survey begins with Pow- 
der Eiver. 

Powder River, which is a muddy stream, comes 
from the southern side of the Big Horn Mount- 
ains and a southwestern source, and therefore is 
not a part of the great aggregate of bright chan- 
nels that combine to feed the Missouri River 
from the Big Horn range proper. True it is, 
that it may be held responsible for their subse- 
quent discoloration, and it does help the Missouri 
to no little portion of that final burden of deposit 
and gravity which so unfavorably appeals to the 
first taste of the traveler from the East ; but this 
is its mission, and simply vindicates its own char- 
acter, as do similar currents in the aggregate of 
the great flow of human life. 

The Big Horn range of the Rocky Mountains 
possesses two distinct and marked features. 
There is, first, a central or backbone range, 
which culminates in perpetual snow, where Cloud 
Peak grandly rises as the chief of all its proud 
summits, falling ofi* slowly and patiently toward 
the southern valleys that are soon confronted by 
similar ranges of the Wind River Mountains 
beyond. 



ABSARAKA DESCRIBED. 25 

The second range is north of the first, and 
after clearly leaving the loftier sweep, it presents 
nearly a perpendicular face to the north, except 
where the earnest torrents have cut deep gorges, 
and thus forced their way to the main tributaries 
of the Missouri. 

Between these ranges, and varying in breadth 
from twelve to twenty -five miles, are fine hunt- 
ing-grounds, abounding in noble orchards, wild 
fruits and grasses, as well as the choicest game 
for the huntsman. This special tract is hardly a 
true plateau, as are the more uniform ofi^sets of 
the Tierre Calients of the Mexican ranges; but 
with all its vicinity to perpetual snow, there are 
gentle slopes which possess peculiar loveliness 
and many elements of future value. With this 
general outline in mind, let the traveler start 
from Fort Reno on Powder River. 

He is in the midst of a sterile country, a sage 
desert. Before him rise the snow-clad mountains, 
but he has weary miles to travel before he gets 
the real value of their benignant expenditure of 
clear cold water upon the vales below. 

A march of twenty-six miles brings him to 
Crazy "Woman's Fork. This river, ever flowing, 
is also ever muddy, having received its largest 
contingent of supply from the same yellow source 
as Powder River. Six miles northwest, and fol- 
lowing the sweep of the Big Horn northern range, 
and some six to eight miles outside its general 

3 



26 ABSARAKA. 

base, a new country opens. Sage brush and cac- 
tus, which for nearly two hundred miles have so 
largely monopolized the soil, rapidly disappear. 
The change is beautiful as it is sudden. One 
narrow divide only is crossed, and the transition 
is like the quick turn of the kaleidoscope, which 
retains indeed the outline, but supplies new com- 
binations and new tints for every object the light 
illuminates. 

Twenty-three miles from Crazy Woman'sFork, 
the bright, noisy, and transparent waters, and the 
rich valley of Clear Fork are reached : — so swift 
that mules and horses have difficulty in crossing; 
so clear that every fish and pebble is well defined; 
and so cool that ice in midsummer is no object 
of desire, this same Clear Fork introduces the 
series of natural charms that have endeared the 
country to the savage, and will in the future 
have equal beauty for those who seek homes in 
a new and hitherto undeveloped land. 

Clear Fork is a genuine flow from the Big 
Horn Mountains, and is a type of many others 
no less constant, pure, and valuable. It is partly 
snow derived, and partly the sum of innumerable 
springs. 

Rock Creek comes nSxt, with far less preten- 
sion, but similar in character. 

After passing Lake Smedt, — the great nurs- 
ing haunt for ducks, wild geese, and brant, and 
which bears the name of Father De Smedt, who, 



ABSARAKA DESCRIBED. 27 

as a Catholic priest, has ministered to the spirit- 
ual and social wants of the northwestern tribes 
for many years, — and only fourteen miles from 
Clear Fork, the traveler comes suddenly upon 
the two Piney Forks of Clear Fork of Powder 
River. 

Here exhaustless supplies of pine and all affili- 
ated trees gather about the mountain sides and 
crawl down even to the islands of the larger 
Fork, where access is easy and convenient ; while 
the abundant game, the local supremacy of the 
situation and its relations to the predominating 
lodge trails of the country, have made this imme- 
diate region the theater of active Indian hostili- 
ties from the time of its first occupation. 

Peno Creek, Goose Creek, Tongue River, 
Rotten Grass Creek, Little Big Horn, and Big 
Horn Rivers succeed, each with bright tributa- 
ries; and so, stream succeeds stream as far as the 
great mountain gates through which the traveler 
enters the rich Gallatin Valley and finds himself 
in Montana proper. 

Nearly parallel, but distant from twelve to 
twenty-five miles northward from the Big Horn 
range, are Mauvais Terres, or " Bad Lands," whose 
conical hills and irregular outlines present all the 
desolate features of old volcanic debris; and when 
seen from some commanding point, appear to be 
hopelessly barren of good, either to man or 
beast. 



28 ABSARAKA. 

And yet, all the rivers above named, and many 
others, boldly cut their way through these ob- 
structions, and gather upon their borders rich 
fringes of vegetation and many elements of fu- 
ture development and profit. 

The valleys of these streams greatly vary in 
width and scope ; that of the Big Horn ranging 
from fifteen to twenty miles, and that of Tongue 
River covering nearly twice that area after it re- 
ceives the contributions of Goose Creek and its 
other mountain feeders. 

The region of country embraced within this 
outline, including the Upper Yellowstone and all 
east of Black Foot and Clark Passes, grasps 
more area of land than most of the large States 
or Territories; and with all its natural connec- 
tions with Montana and Dakota, possesses an 
individual status that must eventually give it in- 
dependence of each. 



NATURAL UISTORT AND CLIMATE. 29 



CHAPTER III. 

THE NATURAL HISTORY AND CLIMATE OF ABSARAKA. 

The agricultural features of Absaraka bave 
bad incidental notice, but not sufficiently to ad- 
vise a stranger of tbeir real merit. 

Wild wbeat and oats abound in all tbe main 
valleys; botb are grateful to stock, and sustain 
tbem well. Tbe grasses are very beavy, so tbat 
in tbe summer of 1866 tbey were almost too re- 
sistant for easy use of macbinery, and so thick 
tbat a borse could not be trotted rapidly in tbe 
bottom lands of Goose Creek and Tongue River. 

Grasshoppers now and tben made a visit, com- 
ing in clouds, like tbe drifting smoke of a prairie 
fire; but they failed to destroy tbe great grass 
region. Still tbey are no insignificant enemy, 
and a literal statement of tbeir dense masses, put 
in tbe most guarded manner, would seem like 
tbe tale of a Munchausen or Gulliver. Tbey 
cover a blade of grass until it bends to tbe earth. 
Tbey cover borse and rider, ruthlessly dashing 
at every exposed part of tbe face or breast. Tbey 
pass over with a rush, like tbe night roar of tbe 
cascades of the Pineys; and tbey shield tbe eye 
BO tbat you can look tbe sun in tbe face as though 
3* 



3C ABSJRAKA. 

a lisrlit flirt of snow had crossed its disk. And 
yet they are so subject to the mastery of the 
mountain winds, whose currents are as constant 
as they are fickle, that they quickly change their 
place of labor and again renew it in other fields 
of freshness and beauty. 

The soil of the valleys is, in the main, a rich, 
deep loam, well adapted for vegetables, and in 
that climate for cereals ; but alternate late and 
early frosts seem combined to refuse to com a 
fair chance with other grain, while on the other 
hand barley, so grateful to mules, could seek no 
better region for its best development. 

While rain, other than the dripping skirts of 
some mountain shower, is rare as diamonds, the 
numberless dashing streams, tributary to the 
great flows, present such ready means of irriga- 
tion that small labor and expense would apply 
them to all desired uses. Besides this, the deep 
snows of the winter season long leave the efiects 
of their fertilizing agency, and when the autumn 
has turned all general vegetation from green to 
brown, the side hills will still be spotted with 
verdant places, where the lingering snow had 
last struggled, as if to contend with the sum- 
mer's sun, for mastery of the grass it had gifted 
with such precocious life and protracted vigor. 

Of wi\d fruit there is great variety. Kaspber- 
ries, strawberries, gooseberries, red currants^^ 
plums, cherries, and rock grapes are among 



NATURAL HISTORY AND CLIMATE. 31 

the number. The cottonwood-trees are often 
festooned with the vine of the hop, which here 
gives forth its product in such profusion and 
perfection, as will find no rival in the cultivated 
acres of Eastern New York. 

The pine and hemlock, the spruce and balsam, 
the Cottonwood and ash, and willow are some of 
the trees which are ready of access and ample in 
supply for the demands of generations. 

The climate is invigorating and healthful. 
There is no dew ; and sickness is so rare, that for 
days in succession, during the constant labor and 
exposure of 1866, no soldiers attended the stated 
daily sick call, and the hospital itself was mo- 
nopolized by cases of surgery only. 

The summer temperature rarely exceeds ninety, 
and the nights are always cool and refreshing. 
Few take cold; and from July 15th, 1866, to 
January 15th, 1867, the barometer changed from 
fair, or very dry, only at the advent of winds 
sweeping from the snow mountains, and at one 
storm of mixed rain and snow, near the date of 
the autumnal equinox. 

The field of natural history is rich beyond all 
precedent. The vicinity of Piney Forks and 
Tongue River is in the very heart of the game 
country. It is, as between several tribes, a semi- 
neutral and general hunting-ground. It is a 
great thoroughfare for migration to and from 
the Arkansas, and the hills in front and rear of 



32 ABSARAKA. 

Fort Philip Kearney are seamed and scarred by 
countless trails, where the Indian poneys have 
dragged lodge poles in their periodical or other 
chan2:08 of habitation and huntino-. 

The antipathy of the Indian to its occupation 
by the white man is very intense and bitter. 
The rattle of the mower, the whistle of the 
steam saw-mill, the felling of timber, the quick 
rise of stockade and substantial warehouses and 
quarters, are such sure signs of permanent pos- 
session, that they lose no opportunity to steal or 
kill when they can do so with comparative im- 
punity. Yet the game still clings to its favorite 
haunts, and the Indian must press upon the steps 
of the white man or lose all hope of future inde- 
pendence. Herds of elk proudly stand with erect 
antlers, as if charmed by the morning music of 
garrison guard parade, or as if curious to under- 
stand this strange inroad upon their long se- 
cluded parks of pleasure. The mountain sheep 
look down from the beetling crags that skirt the 
perpendicular northern face of the Big Horn 
Mountains, and yield to no rival their claims to 
excellence for food. The black and white tail 
deer and the antelope are ever present; while 
the hare and the rabbit, the sage hen and prairie 
chicken, are nearly trodden down before they 
yield to the intrusion of the stranger. Brant, 
wild geese and ducks multiply and people the 
waters of Lake Smedt, and are found in nearly 



NATURAL HISTORY AND CLIMATE. 33 

the same profusion all along the streams under 
the Big Horn Mountains ; while the grizzl}' and 
cinnamon bear, not unseldom, give up their lives 
and their rich material for the table, when, in 
the pursuit of wild plums and other fruit, they 
are crossed by the hunter and are dropped by 
his rifle. Last, and largest, and numberless, the 
bnflalo, with tens of thousands in a herd, sweep 
back and forth, filling the vallej^s as far as the 
eye can reach, and adding their weight and 
numbers to the other substantial claims of the 
red man to entitle this same Absaraka, "Their 

LAST AND BEST HUNTING-GROUNDS." 

The Big Horn River and its branches, as well 
as the streams beyond, are plentifully supplied 
with trout, the mountain pike, and other valua- 
ble fish, and thus complete the complement of 
supplies with which the country is so generously 
provided. 

Innumerable wolves do indeed pierce the night 
air with their howls ; but like the beaver, whose 
dams incumber all the smaller streams, and the 
otter, they are forced to yield their winter cover- 
ing for those nice coats and caps, those mits and 
blankets and leggings, which make men glad 
when zero is often reached, or the mercury calmly 
congeals in the bulb. 

And yet, with the intervals of extreme cold 
and protracted snow, there is comparatively little 
suffering, unless from scurvy, when antiscor- 



34 ABSARAKA. 

butics are scarce, or men are careless, and rheu- 
matism attends peculiar exposure. The dry snows, 
when in real earnest, penetrate every crevice, 
and drift about every obstruction. Valleys and 
gulches are filled, and travel is tedious or in 
abeyance; but the winter has its pleasures no 
less than the summer, and but for the hostility 
of the red man, the upper garrisons of that line 
would hardly exchange their posts for any other 
on the frontier. 

The mineral field imparts some of its peculiar 
contributions to the stores of Absaraka. Gold 
color is given in nearly all the streams, as already 
once indicated. Whether the sources of those 
streams will ever equal Montana precedents, must 
remain for the hard labor or good chance of the 
adventurer, or the skill and patience of some 
enterprising savant, to determine. The Black 
Hills, east of Fort Reno, have indications that 
promise rich returns of labor, and the Lower 
Powder River has been left unoccupied by 
miners only because of the hostility of Buffiilo 
Tongue and other Indians who infest its valley. 
The few excursions of a geological and scientific 
character, made in 1866, were almost always 
restricted in range and results by the exposure 
involved, and the absolute impossibility of pro- 
curing escort from small and hard worked com- 
mands. Small samples of lead and silver were 
found, but these and gold will have to be worked 



NATURAL HISTORY AND CLIMATE. 35 

for. Neither will often be stumbled upon by 
treasure seekers; neither will they roll their 
ofierings to the feet of idlers to solicit the ap- 
propriation of their pounds and ounces. 

Coal is exhausiless. It can be found all along 
the route from Powder River to the Upper Yel- 
lowstone, and the red buttes which dot the 
country for miles northward are grand reposi- 
tories of the same article. Lignite and the lower 
grades of wood coal are the prevailing type; but 
a vein was opened close to Fort Philip Kearney, 
soon after its establishment, in 1866, which was 
advantageously used in welding of iron, and will 
prove no less valuable for winter fires. 

Limestone is attainable from the mountain, 
although somewhat difficult of transportation at 
present. Clay is abundant, and of such quality 
as to make a firm plaster coating upon simple 
exposure to the sun. 

While the discoloration of the red buttes has 
been traced to the presence of iron, and it is also 
found in many of the sands, no ores have yet 
been exposed, nor have indications been made of 
its presence in any available supply. All other 
building materials are plentiful, and the tall 
pines furnish clear lumber of any required 
length or breadth, without a knot or blemish 
to mar their uniformity or beauty. Where some 
Indian fire has spread and struck a forest, so as 
to benumb its growth, the house builder finds his 



36 ABSARAKA. 

sound dry timber, which readily takes the plane 
and a handsome finish, and the perfection of its 
seasoning in that dry atmosphere is a work of 
short duration. 

The magnetic variation at Fort Phil Kearney 
is 19° 20', and its altitude over six thousand feet 
above the level of the sea; while half as high 
again above it rises Cloud Peak, completing 
the landscape and crowning all with its purity 
and beauty. 



CHAPTER IV. 

sJRGANIZATION OP THE EXPEDITION TO ABSARAKA. 

Fort Kearney, Nebraska, was the rendezvous 
where the first expedition was organized for the 
permanent occupation of Absaraka. With little 
positive information of the country to be occu- 
pied, we had the assurance that it was a precious 
region to the Indian ; the most direct route for 
emigration to Montana; and then, there was the 
pressure of public opinion at the West in favor 
of the early establishment of the route, under the 
sanction of military authority, and its corre- 
sponding guarantees of troops and the support 
of connected posts. 



ORGANIZATION OF THE EXPEDITION. 37 

Maps were consulted in vain for something 
definite in the way of description, and every- 
body's book which said anything about the In- 
dian of the Rocky Mountains was eagerly read 
and carefully digested, from the adventures of 
Lewis and Clarke to the last newspaper corre- 
spondent from the Plains. 

Then we had the foreshadowings of the long- 
heralded Laramie council to be held in May, 
when all the Lidians of the disputed region were 
to assemble, and where, after the inevitable 
smoking and talking, a solemn peace was to be 
established and ratified, and a genuine right of 
way was to be secured to the modern laud of 
Ophir. 

Then began preparations for the march. Re- 
ports were coufiicting as to whether the climate 
belonged truly to the frigid or temperate zone ; 
whether the land was prolific in vegetation, or 
barren and worthless. 

A winter's march from Fort Leavenworth to 
Fort Kearney in 1865, when the mercury was 
twelve degrees below zero and two feet of snow 
was first to be shoveled aside before a tent could 
be pitched — when the prairie winds penetrated 
every garment, and drifting snows often blinded 
any advance — was deemed a suflicient experience 
to decide the ladies to undertake the journey and 
risk the issues of a Rocky Mountain winter 

It was a little drawback to the perfection of 
4 



38 ABSARAKA. 

plans for housekeeping that the only post on a 
line of more than seven hundred miles was to be 
abandoned, and that all the posts in the new 
command were to be built far from civilization 
and supplies, and in time for winter use; but 
seeming banishment did not discourage, after the 
purpose was settled to go on. 

The general plan had been outlined by Gen- 
eral Pope, who had large experience in Indian 
affairs, and had in view the exact relations of the 
new route to advancing emigration, the quickest 
communication with Montana, and the proba- 
bility of a peaceful occupation through the 
agency of the Laramie council. 

ISTorthwest of Fort Laramie, one hundred and 
sixty-seven miles distant, was Fort Reno, for- 
merly Fort Connor, named after General Con- 
nor, who marched to Tongue River in 1865, and 
returned safely, after meeting ample opposition 
to discourage a farther advance. This was to 
be moved about forty miles west, to be rebuilt 
for a four-company post, and two additional forts 
were to be constructed — one on or near the Big 
Horn River, and the second on or near the Upper 
Yellowstone. To this duty the 2d Battalion of 
the 18th U. S. Infantry had been assigned, 
under the command of Colonel Carrington of 
that regiment, who was also designated as Dis- 
trict Commander, with headquarters at the neio 
Fort Reno. The battalion numbered at that 



ORGANIZATION OF THE EXPEDITION. 39 

time just about two hundred and twenty men, 
many of whom were veterans having less than 
a year to serve, but, with the band and clerks, 
making an aggregate of nearly two hundred and 
sixty who were preparing for the trip. 

General Dodge, who then commanded the 
United States forces in Kansas and the territo- 
ries, and whose map is the only intelligible map 
of that country, actively interested himself in 
the expected movement, and within a week after 
he received application for a steam saw-mill, had 
purchased and started it on its journey. The 
Interior Department furnished maps. The Smith- 
sonian gave its contributions. Professors Silli- 
man and Dana, of Yale College, supplied stand- 
ard English and American works upon the 
various departments of natural science; while 
transit^ levels and other instruments for surveys, 
observations, and such other duty as would aid 
in the exploration and development of a new 
country, were also provided. 

A strange medley was that outfit, and its cata- 
logue, to which something was constantly added, 
opened our eyes to a clearer view of the fact that 
we were to live a pioneer life, and begin a new 
career at the very foundation of border expe- 
rience. 

Tools of all kinds were of course to be gath- 
ered together. Thus, there were mowing ma- 
chines, and shingle and brick machines, doors, 



10 ABSARAKA. 

sash, glass, nails, locks, and every conceivable 
article that can enter into house-building. Fu- 
ture blacksmiths, wheelwrights, painters, harness- 
makers, and carpenters, who were to be hunted 
up out of the command, had to be provided with 
the implements of their craft. All contingencies 
had to be anticipated, so that the day of arrival 
in the new country should be the day of com- 
mencement, and there should then be no delay 
to wait for anything from the United States. 

Meanwhile, the Laramie contributors to the 
public press were swelling the numbers of the 
Indians who already were or soon would be at 
the conference, some estimating the number as 
high as twenty and even thirty thousand. Cer- 
tainly there were indications that the Indians 
were really intending to visit that post and delib- 
erate upon surrender of the coveted route. 

The death of the young daughter of " Spotted 
Tail," and her burial at Laramie with religious 
rites and many complimentary services, had 
brought that chief into closer relations of friend- 
ship, and messengers had been sent far and wide 
to bid Cheyennes and Arrapahoes, as well as 
Sioux, to the grave discussion. 

The contingency that the Indians who occu- 
pied the territory in question might stay away, 
and then fight the expedition, was so remote in 
the assurance of a treaty, that it was hardly con- 
sidered, except that it induced a request for a 



ORGANIZATION OF TUE EXPEDITION. 41 

short delay, until the arrival of recruits who were 
already enlisted and on the way from New York. 

The band donned additional equipments, and 
drilled with the Spencer carbine, and these same 
arms afterward proved of infinite value ; while 
the afternoon and evening music of the band 
lightened the labor and sweetened the privations 
of our partial exile. 

While still waiting for recruits, General Sher- 
man visited the post, entering into the spirit and 
plans of the expedition with his usual energy and 
skill. At his suggestion some of the ladies be- 
gan their daily journal of events, and thus laid 
the basis for the conversion of one into this nar- 
rative for the eyes of friends who could not share 
the trip. 

On the 13th of May the recruits arrived, and 
were distributed among the companies to learn to 
be soldiers. With them came the 3d Battalion, 
Company F of the Ist Battalion, and recruits for 
the whole regiment, thus swelling the marching 
command to nearly two thousand men. But the 
routes to Salt Lake City were to be guarded, 
both the direct mail line and the northern road 
by Forts Laramie and Caspar, so that the eight 
companies of the 2d Battalion remained as the 
fixed detail for the Mountain District. 

There was no cavalry, but as the outgoing 

volunteer regiments were to leave their horses at 

Laramie, and we were to have two hundred to 
4* 



42 ABSAEAKA. 

mount infantry until cavalry could be furnished, 
the interesting experiment of determining how 
many could ride a horse was initiated. For- 
tunately, two volunteer cavalry regiments passed 
by, on the way home for muster-out, and the two 
hundred horses were procured at once. This was 
doubly agreeable to officers and men, as it trans- 
pired that, on arrival at Laramie, the volunteers 
had preferred to ride to the Missouri River on 
horseback rather than to loalky and there were 
not horses enough to replace a few that died on 
the road. As memory reverts back, it now seems 
fortunate in another aspect, as otherwise there 
v/ould have been no horses for couriers or pick- 
ets, and the expedition might have experienced 
even more difficulties than it did encounter in 
communicating with the United States and the 
positions occupied. So cavalry was improvised. 
Men got upon the horses, and the majority ac- 
tually made the first trip to water without being 
dismounted. Some men were embarrassed when 
the long Springfield rifle was put on the horse 
with them, but both man and horse soon learned 
how it was to be done. 

At length all things were declared ready. 
Rocking chairs and sewing chairs, churns and 
washing machines, with a bountiful supply of 
canned fruits, were duly stored inside or outside 
of army wagons; while turkeys and chickens, and 
one brace of swine, added a specially domestic 



ORGANIZATION OF THE EXPEDITION 43 

cast to some of the establishments prepared for 
the journey. Thanks to a defective flue, which 
set fire to our house, burning it, with all the con- 
tents of the attic, a few days before we left — 
some best chairs, bedsteads, and mattresses (all 
properly packed), with a half hundred beef 
tongues, some potatoes and selected groceries, 
were prematurely consumed; but as this was 
only an incident very possible in army life, the 
fun of the afi'air made up for its losses. 

The last thing done looked a little warlike : 
the magazine was opened and all the ammuni- 
tion that could be spared from the fort was drawn 
out and loaded in wagons; but its comparatively 
meager supply gave little annoyance, as Laramie 
would be expected to furnish the deficit in case 
any further fighting material should be required 
in the way of powder and lead. Then we had 
the news that a battalion of the 13th Infantry 
had been ordered to build a new post at the foot 
of the Northern Black Hills, while two compa- 
nies were to keep open the road thence to Fort 
Keno, thus giving fair assurance that the Indians 
of that location and Powder River valley would 
be watched and held to their own theater of ac- 
tion in case the Laramie council should fail to 
establish a peace on the Plains. 

The expedition had the following organiza- 
tion : District Commander, Colonel H. B. Car- 
ringtou, 18th U. S. Infantry; Assistant Adjutant- 



44 ABSARAKA. 

General, Brevt. Captain Frederick Phisterer, Ad- 
jutant 18th U. S. Infantry ; Chief Quartermaster, 
Lieutenant Frederick II. Brown, Quartermaster 
18th U. S. Infantry; Chief Surgeon, Brevt. Ma- 
jor S. M. Horton, Assistant Surgeon IT. S. A.; 
Acting Assistant Surgeons, Dr. H. M. Matthews, 
Dr. B. N. McCleary, and Dr. H. Baalan ; Bat- 
talion Commander, Brevt. Major H. Raymond, 
2d Battalion ; Mounted Infantry, Captain T. Ten 
Eyck, 18th U. S. Infantry; Battalion Adjutant, 
Brevt. Captain Wm. H. Bisbee, 2d Battalion. The 
additional officers were Captain and Brevt. Lieu- 
tenant Colonel N. C. Kinney, Captain J. L. Proc- 
tor, Captain T. B. Burrows, Lieutenant J. J. 
Adair, Lieutenant Thaddeus P. Kirtland, Lieu- 
tenant Isaac D'Isay. 

As chief guide. Major James Bridger had been 
selected, assisted by II. Williams, who had been 
a guide to several expeditions to the Kepublican 
during the winter of 1865-6 ; and thus organ- 
ized, the command was ready. 



DEPARTURE FROM FORT KEARNEY. 45 



CHAPTER V. 

FROM FORT KEARNEY TO CROSSING OF TTNION PACIFIC RAIL- 
ROAD — INCIDENTS OF THE PLATTE RIVER TRAVEL REUNION 

OF THE OFFICERS OF THE EIGHTEENTH INFANTRY — CROSSING 
THE RIDICULOUS PLATTE. 

Few days on the plains are more bright and 
promising, notwithstanding such a cloud of dust 
as the plains only can supply, than was the nine- 
teenth day of May, a.d. 1866. 

Two hundred and twenty-six mule-teams, be- 
sides ambulances, were the outfit, and the band 
of over thirty pieces regaled us with just the 
right music, until the column passed Kearney 
City, popularly known to travelers as "Dobey 
(Adobe) Town." 

The march was along the Platte River, whose 
quicksands and fickle currents have been the 
bane of travelers since Lewis and Clarke abused 
it and Colonel Bonneville crossed it. Alkaline 
and muddy, — sometimes disappearing under the 
sandy bed, so that a footman can cross from shore 
to shore without seeing water, and again flowing 
even with its banks; sometimes surfeiting the 
south channel, under the pressure of a strong 
north wind, and again, within the same sun, roll- 
ing back so as to foil the calculations of some 



46 ABSAEAKA. 

traveler who crossed in the morning, expecting 
an equally safe crossing at night,— it has no dis- 
putant to oppose its claim to be the most unac- 
countably contrary and ridiculous river the 
world ever saw. 

But in our course along the Platte in 1866, 
we had, such as it was, all the water we wished. 
One day was much like another day, with the 
same march at the earliest dawn, the same ad- 
ventures with rattlesnakes, the same pursuit of 
wild flowers, the same inopportune thunder- 
storms, the same routine of guard mounting at 
sunset, the same evening music from the band, 
and the same sound slumber. Recurring Sab- 
baths gave us our only intervals of rest ; and the 
fact that at Fort Reno we overtook trains which 
started before us, but marched daily, is a sub- 
stantial testimony, concurrent with all intelli- 
gent experience, that the observance of the 
Lord's day is indispensable alike to man and 
beast. On such occasions Lieutenants Adair, 
Kirtland, and D'Isay, occasionally joined by Mr. 
Phisterer, tenor, helped to make something like 
true melody from the sweet Sabbath Bell sent us 
by the Sabbath school of Rev. Mr. Dimmick, of 
Omaha, before our departure from Kearney. 

Fort McPherson, then consisting of shabby log- 
cabins, but now a beautiful and well-built post, 
was passed on the 24th of May, the only halt 
beino; to seek additional ammunition and take 



INCIDENTS OF PLATTE RIVER TRAVEL. 47 

along an idle saw-mill not needed at that post. 
On the 29th we camped near the Old California 
Crossing, and received a call from Col. Otis and 
some gentlemen of the Peace Commission, who, 
with agreeable presents for the red men, were on 
their way to the Laramie council. About dark 
the news was brought that nearly three hundred 
Indians had crossed the Platte near by for a hunt 
on the Republican, having permission to be ab- 
sent from Laramie until other bands came in 
and the commission should formally assemble. 

"Old Little Dog," whose son burned Jules- 
burg in 1864, came into camp and made com- 
plaint that some one of our soldiers had entered 
his lodge and stolen his rifle. After a somewhat 
curious observation of the performance of the 
band and special admiration of the bell-chimes, 
and upon being assured that his gun should be 
found and returned to him, he sprang upon the 
bare back of his pony with all the elasticity of 
youth and more than the skill of our mounted 
infantry, and galloped swiftly away. He had the 
appearance of being very old, but his agility and 
address in his intercourse with that pony were 
decidedly suggestive of the probable skill and 
activity of the young warriors of his nation. 

Fort Sedgwick, near the so-called city of Jules- 
burg, was reached on the 30th of May. This city, 
though burned by Little Dog, had been rebuilt, 
fio as to number nearly a dozen houses and stores, 



48 ABSARAKA. 

and a year later, in 1867, another Julcsburg, of 
canvas and portable frame buildings, dwellings, 
shops, hotels, refectories, and recreatories, had 
sprung up on the north side of the river, as an ac- 
companiment to the progress of the Union Pacific 
Railroad, boasting its three thousand inhabitants, 
all of them determined to remain there until they 
could do as well or better elsewhere farther on. 
The water and soil of the new^ location were not 
equal to those of the ^Vabash, Scioto, or Connec- 
ticut River valleys: but, on the other hand, in 
neither of these old-fashion regions could a wall 
tent rent at one hundred dollars per day ; neither 
could a piece of canva-s, sufficiently large to cover 
a billiard table, command its thousand dollars per 
week. 

But in 1866 we stopped three days, out of re- 
spect for the Platte. This delay was somewhat 
relieved by shopping calls upon the post sutler, 
Mr. Adams, nephew of Mr. Stanton, Secretary 
of War, while the troops were drawing supplies 
or caulking and fitting out a large flatboat, which, 
procured from Denver, was at the fort, nearly 
half a mile from the element for which its in- 
ventor had designed it. 

After caulking, this apparatus had to be con- 
veyed to the water; a double cable had to be 
sprung across the river, and science was sum- 
moned to do its best to adapt its heavy draught 
to the quicksands, shoals, and currents of the 



CROSSING THE RIDICULOUS PLATTE. 49 

ubiquitous Platte. Two hundred men made 
quick work, and when the science of the learned 
was appalled at the magnitude of the undertak- 
ing, the common sense and practical skill of Cap- 
tain Ten Eyck, an old surveyor and lumberman, 
solved all problems and crossed the craft safely. 
Twenty yoke of cattle drew the first cable over, 
when mules struggled in vain to start it ; and 
Mrs. Lieutenant Bisbee and Jean were the first 
family passengers after the ferry was actually 
established. But the natural contrai'iuess of the 
Platte, although so signally rebuked by the pas- 
sage of a real boat, and permitting its current to 
aid in its flight, was never more conspicuously 
developed thau when it really seemed to under- 
stand that the object of that boat was to get 
wagons, teams, and stores to the north bank in 
safety, and thereby circumvent its ugly temper. 
Although the river had been examined for miles 
to see if there was not some available ford, be- 
fore shipcraft and navigation were resorted to, no 
sooner did that boat attempt its mission in real 
earnest with prospect of success thau this identi- 
cal Platte River fell more than afoot. Then could 
be seen navigation under difficulties. ]^ew ed- 
dies, spiteful currents, and outcropping bars, with 
desperate quicksands and the constantly varying 
depth of water, in turn caught it, and stopped it, 
and turned it, until the gallant crew actually leaped 
overboard. Then, partly kept out of the river 

5 



60 ABSARAKA. 

bottom by a grasp upon the gunwale, and partly 
kept in progress by hand-over-haud along the 
cable, those intrepid mariners crossed that boat 
once again in less than four hours by the watch. 
The prospect of spending until the autumn 
fall of water in completing the transit, aroused a 
fresh spirit of enterprise and developed new ex- 
pedients. The slight fall of water had been care- 
fully gauged, and, unknown to the water sprite 
who was plainly in league with the Sioux of Ab- 
saraka, and therefore opposed to our further ad- 
vance, a great array of timber was procured; 
wagons were unloaded; false beds or frames 
were prepared ; half loads replaced full loads, 
and a bold push was made to defy all elements 
of evil. To be sure, the lead mules would be 
swimming, the middle team pulling, the wheel 
team floundering, and the wagon would be roll- 
ing in quicksand ; but the expedient of double 
teams always left some one or more span on the 
earth's surface, to pull on or push on the others. 
It was crossing the Platte in more ways than one; 
for we did it in very spite of that natural forlorn- 
ness of disposition which so undeniably approx- 
imates the natural depravity of man. Enough 
to say that the Platte was crossed. A few mules 
got their ears under water, to drown from innate 
stubbornness. A few harness were cut to save 
others. Some riders had to tow the lead team 
with ropes; and enough whipping was applied 



REUNION OF OFFICERS. 51 

for a week of ordinary travel. Water would melt 
sugar and cake the Hour, and now and then a 
stray knapsack or haversack floated down the 
current ; but^ the Platte was crossed ! 

Before the consummation of this achievement, 
which the innovations of the raih-oad will pre- 
vent us from renewing, there was a social enter- 
tainment in camp not to be forgotten. 

It was the last reunion of the officers of the 
18th Infantry. The bill before Congress pro- 
posing to add two companies to each battalion, 
and thus make of each a new regiment, was al- 
ready fait accomplit; and a regiment that alone 
had filled its twenty-four companies within a year 
after its organization in 1861, and which had re- 
ceived into its ranks over five thousand men, was 
finally to separate and prepare for new relations 
and new titles. 

The young officers, full of regrets, but as full 
of life and devotion to the general comfort as 
ever, arranged a farewell concert of " Iron-clad 
Minstrels," under the supervision of Majors Van 
Voast and Burt. Hospital tents were unloaded 
and united in one grand pavilion. Camp stools 
and chairs from baggage wagons, or the fort, 
were brought into requisition, and a grand con- 
cert was the result. 

It is an old army fashion to enliven the mo- 
notony of frontier life by extemporized opera, 
charades, readings, and the miniature drama; 



52 ABSARAKA. 

and the illustrations on this occasion were excel- 
lent. The string band gave us a splendid orches- 
tra, and the violins and violoncello, the clarionets 
and the flute, the French horns and the trumpet, 
the trombone and the tuba, alternately supplied 
the solo, or replenished the chorus, as the bones 
and banjo called for their interference. Faces 
only were unfamiliar; and the fifteen or twenty 
sergeants and soldiers, who, with fine voices, per- 
fect harmony, and the usual hon-mots of Ethiopian 
minstrelsy, entertained the lovers of, now and 
then, a little sport, did as full justice to their 
music as they had efiectually transformed them- 
selves from Caucasian to African by the perva- 
sive laws of burnt cork. 

Then came the parting at the colonel's tent. 
A part of the command were to march two days 
longer with headquarters, while others were to 
leave the next morning for other fields of duty. 

Captain Neil, Mrs. ISTeil, and Miss Bella had 
already occupied post headquarters at Fort Sedg- 
wick. Captain Kellogg, Mrs. Kellogg, and little 
Harry, who, with Harry and Jimmy Carrington, 
had raced poneys daily on the march from Kear- 
ney, were also detached with Lieutenant Wilcox 
and two companies, and practical separation 
began. 

Army life alone has these peculiar separations. 
Bound closely in social intimacies, separated 
from the affinities of active life in the States, 



ARMY LIFE. 53 

tbe fleeting friendships of garrison or camp life 
are full of fraternal endearments, both in sick- 
ness and health, that go very far, when gentlemen 
are gentlemen and ladies are ladies, to atone for 
banishment and public service far from the cour- 
tesies and amenities of civil life. Hence, when 
tender relations are established and congenial 
pirits meet, it is painful to sunder those ties. 
Then the esprit de corps of families becomes hardly 
less sacred than that which unites officers when 
the ideal of army pride is attained, and each re- 
gards the honor of another as dear as his own, 
and jealousies and backbitings sink to the level 
of their own intrinsic meanness. Exceptions 
only prove how essential is such a law for social 
life in the army, and those who violate its be- 
hests, alone are degraded and suffer. !N^o caste 
of rank invades their social life, neither does the 
parade-ground entrench upon the parlor; yet the 
proprieties and courtesies of good society every- 
where affirm their prerogatives and give delight- 
someness to the relations of all. 

So pleasant was the parting at Sedgwick, even 
with its sadness ; and long will that evening recall 
to the old 18th its participation on that occasion 
when so long a good-by was begun. 

Two days of marching from Fort Sedgwick 
brought us to Louis' rauche at the upper cross- 
ing of Lodge Pole Creek. Noiv, the Union Pa- 
cific Railroad has passed that point, and from 
5* 



54 ABSARAKA. 

Cheyenne begins its borings for the waters of the 
Pacific. The South Pkxtte was left at Sedgwick. 
The first clay's march is seventeen miles to Lodge 
Pole Creek, and the second is eighteen miles to 
Louis' ranche. Here we spent another social 
evening with those of the third battalion under 
Major Lewis, a true man and perfect soldier, 
whose destination was Camp Douglass, by way 
of Lodge Pole Creek caiion, and so on to the 
pleasant land of Deseret and Salt Lake City. 
Here also we parted with Mrs. McClintick and 
Mrs. Burt and their husbands, and Mrs. Burt's 
sister, Miss Reynolds, thus still more reducing 
our coterie of ladies, and still farther separating 
us from the associations of the march and old 
times at home. 



CHANGES MADE BY THE RAILROAD 55 



CIIArTER VI. 

REMINISCENCES OF KANCHING, AND OLD TIMES ON THE ROUTE 
FROM LEAVENWORTU TO SEDGEWICK. 

Up to Louis' ranclie all styles of being, and the 
very routes of travel have changed. This very 
Pacific Kailroad, with its swift pulse, drives 
everything along, and its chief engineer, General 
Dodge, seems to attempt the annihilation of time 
and space, with the same indefatigable spirit as 
that with which he won the thanks of every- 
body at old Kearney in aiding their efficient out- 
fit for the Plains; and Superintendent Durant is 
tireless as he is successful. But the change 
from 1865, and even from 1866, when our narra- 
tive gathers its chief contributions, is marked. 
Then, no railroad stretched its hard arms after 
the traveler or emigrant; and the report of its 
coming was like the prophecies of some madmen 
who think that New York City will soon travel 
westward, to absorb the prerogatives and loca- 
tion of Rocky Mountain custom and commerce. 

Before this railroad began its journey, travel- 
ers from Leavenworth varied their days' marches, 
as few will be able to do again. There was first 
a rough ride to the "Nine Mile Station," with its 



56 AIsiSAEAKA. 

uncomfortable stone house. Then came, in turn, 
the crossing of the Acheson and Pike's Peak 
Raih'oad; Kinnekuck, on the Big Grasshopper, 
beyond Grenada, where the ^^ kickcqjoo" Indians 
were buying and begging; Big Muddy; Ash 
Point; Big Blue, with Simpson's capital Yankee 
store of notions; Rock Creek; Big Sandy; Little 
Blue River, with its perpetual Indian alarms and 
occasional depredations; Little Blue Station; 
Spring Creek; Pawnee Ranche; Sand Hill 
Station; and Valley City, or "Dog Town," 
only nine miles from Fort Kearney. 

Valley City was then ambitious and enter- 
prising; but, in 1867, our friend Haney was the 
sole resident; and Hook, the old caterer for Fort 
Kearney, had gone farther west to establish his 
fortunes in some larger field of usefulness and 
profit. We saw him at McPherson, in June, when 
on his winding way, and the papers say he is 
mayor or alderman in the proud city — Cheyenne. 

In those days, Kearney City was a busy mart 
of trade, and future south side railroads will re- 
store its business. Plattsmouth and Nebraska 
City sent many an outfit of loaded wagons. Ox- 
teams and mule-teams, and teams with horses, 
and horses with saddles, brought many new 
visitors, who lunched, bartered, and journeyed 
on. Here, Piper and Robinson, Brown and 
Linnell, Michel, Thomas, Dr. Brashure, Talbot, 
the veteran officer, and a host of others devoted 



REMINISCENCES OF RANCH I NO. 51 

their time to the well-being of all who lingered 
at their doors; but it was after Kearney was 
passed, that the glory of legitimate ranching 
began. McLean and the. genial Sydenham, our 
Fort Kearney Postmaster; Gallagher; Pat Mal- 
lalley; Dan Smith; Gilman, a man of business, 
straightforward and worthy, and Coles, were a 
few who ministered to our comfort on the way 
to McPherson. Then came Fitchies, Burkes, 
Morrows, Bakers, Browns, Beauvais, and Valen 
tines, all accommodating and excellent. We 
stop to speak of Jack Morrow, the prince of 
ranchemen, and the king of good fellows. He is 
a rancheman indeed ! Fortune has showered her 
favors about his life's journey and prosperity 
dwelleth within his walls. Keen in business, 
generous, and ^'- hail fellow" his career, on the 
South Platte, has become temporarily restricted; 
but, witli his indomitable spirit, no sooner did 
that Union Pacific Railroad shoot by his ranche, 
on the northern shore, than he moved ranche 
and all across its quicksands and waters, and 
went on his usual course as if nothing new had 
come along. A two-story frame, one of the best 
on the Plains, went down, over, and up again, as 
if the genii of Aladdin's lamp had been assigned 
to special duty in his behalf, and Jack was him- 
self again. 

But ranchemen are westward bound. Soon, 
they will be known no more forever! The 



68 ABSARAKA. 

Pacific will stop them on this continent, and fur- 
ther than that, the future historian must write 
of their struggles and their triumphs. It would 
be just like Jack Morrow to go to Alaska, run 
a ferry across Behring Straits, and open a ranche 
for Americans and Russians who choose that 
route of travel from America to Europe. A 
tribute to the memory of ranchmen and a record 
of their styles and methods on the Plains is 
simple justice to the history of the nineteenth 
century. Already they are not as they were! 
Nebraska, one of the latest and one of the best 
of new States when its development shall ripen, 
has entertained and profited some of their best, 
as well as those not so ambitious or genteel. 

From Fort Leavenworth to Fort Kearney, 
from Kearney to McPherson, from McPherson 
to Sedgewick, nearly all ranches have been 
abandoned, or the occupants only linger for the 
protection of their lives and property. They 
have had their comforts and discomforts, and 
among them we met some of the best and 
bravest and the biggest hearted men of any race 
or people. 

To some, who have never tarried at a ranche, 
it will not come amiss to introduce a few sam- 
ples which our experience impressed upon the 
memory. 

Eanches alike provide for man and beast, 
and are arranged for their special care and pro- 



REMINISCENCES OF RANCHING. 59 

tection. A large yard is surrounded by a stock- 
ade paling, with stabling, feed troughs, and hay- 
ricks, with here and there loop-holes for the rifle. 
In places of imminent peril from Indian attacks, 
such as Valentine's, Baker's, or Louis's, the wall 
of the upper stories and every angle of house or 
stable has its outlets for tiring upon an ap- 
proaching foe. The log or adobe house, which 
provides for the master as well as the corral pro- 
vides for his beast, is often small; but, like an 
eastern omnibus or street car, is unlimited in 
accommodations for all who seek its shelter. 

Let the readers of this narrative enter with us 
into a few sample ranches of our actual and literal 
experience, for illustration of their social capacity 
and things as they were, and let them envy the 
life of an officer's wife on the Plains, 

Just at dark, one bitter November afternoon in 
1865, when drifting snows obscured all advance, 
we '■'■ struck a ra)iche." It had but one story, was 
long and narrow, and was divided into three 
apartments, each having a front window and door. 
Two Acheson coaches, respectively bound east 
and west, with the California and Salt Lake City 
mails, were in front, looking as if they had stood 
there for six months, through accumulating snow ; 
and yet they were ordy waiting for their drivers 
and forlorn passengers to thaw and feed, and for the 
stock to do the same. Room number one, as well 
as room number two, had a substantial earth floor 



60 ABSARAKA. 

Tlie former, about ten by twelve feet square, had 
quite a plain plank counter, and upon shelves 
behind could be seen the names of Mr. Drake, 
Mr. Kelly, Log Cabin, Bourbon, and others, 
equally euphonious, designed to represent certain 
bottled products, which for a considerable sum of 
money were susceptible of transfer on proper de- 
mand. Some were labeled Gin, which never 
Bnw juniper ; some were labeled Rye, which never 
knew that cereal ; and some were simply labeled 
"Whisky, which were modest high wines and 
water, with very little of the water, — at least, so 
said those gentlemen who tried experiments of 
analysis for scientific purposes. Nutmegs, pep- 
permint, navy tobacco, clay pipes, salaratus, bak- 
ing powder, bologna, and ready-made clothing, 
with rows of canned fruits, furnished a large part 
of the invoice of the shelves; while black snake 
whips, tin cups, camp kettles, and frying-pans 
hung in profusion overhead. This room was 
well patronized, and in a half frozen state we 
rushed for its brilliant candlelight, waiting for fur- 
ther notice of our future disposition. Being in- 
troduced to room 7iumher iioo, we found passen- 
gers, stage drivers and the teamsters of a passing 
train, apparently surfeited with supplies drawn 
from room number one, and huddled about a 
table, where two big platters of bacon and cab- 
bage, with tin cups smoking with coffee, were 
being disposed of as supper. The conversation 



REMmiSGENCES OF RANCHING. 61 

of the party (for the wife of the host had been 
sent to the States) related mainly to a recent In- 
dian depredation on the Little Blue, and what 
each one would have done if he had been there 
at the eventful crisis. The language had a med- 
ley of positive terms, whichin New England would 
be G2\\edij)rofane; and the prospect ahead drove 
us to inquiries as to the shelter of room number 
three. But, finding that ourself and children and 
Mrs. Neil and daughter could not agreeably share 
its board floor with ten or twelve characters whose 
social habitudes seemed only adapted to room 
number one, we threw ourselves upon the courtesy 
of Adjutant Phisterer and Quartermaster Brown, 
who soon had the snow shoveled aside, our tents 
pitched, a piece of the corral carefully chopped for 
the camp stove, and all arrangements made for 
hot coftee, and a good wrapping up, either to 
sleep or freeze. We slept, and survived! 

Another ranche was approached, when the 
storm compelled a full day's stop. The mules 
could not, or would not go on, and the drivers 
could neither see nor drive. The upsetting ol 
our ambulance, and being borne by strong men 
a half mile through drifts is still painfully remem- 
bered, as well as the wonderful fact that while 
our head was nearly broken, our basket of eggs 
accomplished the upset without injury. Fortu- 
nately a ranche with its usual palisade and sta- 

6 



62 ABSARAKA. 

bling was near. The kind lady proprietress gave 
us her owu family room; only reserving one-half 
for herself, her husband, and children, by the in- 
terposition of a small suspended comfort, while 
ample ventilation was insured between the un- 
chinked logs, where no comfort was. To our 
jests, and especially the whimsicalities of Quarter- 
master Brown, an inveterate punster, always full 
of good cheer, who hazarded the rather profane 
jest that, "in his opinion, it would be hard work 
for the Angel Gabriel to make his trumpet reach 
that country," — the old lady replied : " Well, you 
are the jolliest set of folks I ever saw out here : — 
don't see how in mercy you can laugh, and go 
on so !" When Mrs. Neil asked if there were In- 
dians about, another, with more heroism, replied 
that "s/ie had heard so much about Indians, and 
been half scared out of her senses so many times, 
that she had jest about made up her mind that 
she wouldn't believe nothing more, until she was 
skulped!" Mrs. Neil, with quick discernment, 
took a lounge near the fireplace, while the colonel 
and Lieutenants Phisterer and Brown took to a 
shed near by : but during the night the Cali- 
fornia coach came down, and its half-frozen pas- 
sengers rushed for the fire. The lounge was the 
first object of seizure ; alas, for Mrs. Neil, who 
was only relieved from her discomfort, by loss of 
rest, and the banishment of strangers, until she 
was able to escape, and share with us the family 



REMINISCENCES OF RANCUINO. 63 

room, par excellence, of the house. Our hill was 
four dollars each ! 

A third ranche had its front store-room and 
its kitchen. Voices of men, who were ranged on 
the earth, like rows of pins, disturbed sleep, and 
the kitchen stove nearly burned our blankets, 
while its steaming incense no less shocked our 
senses ; but we actually slept, — everybody was 
good natured, and some fresh pork and new eggs 
for breakfast, with a cup of our own coffee, sent 
us on our way rejoicing. 

Louis' ranche, near the present Sydney Station, 
is quite a fort, and the outhouses and stables are 
advanced like bastions, so that enfilading fire can 
be had in all directions. 

Such were some of the ranches of 1865. 



64 ABSARAKA. 



CHAPTER VII. 

UNION PACIFIC RAILKOAD TO LARAMIE — COURT-HOUSE ROCK 
— CHIMNEY ROCK — FORTIFICATION ROCK — SCOTT'S BLUFFS 
— WONDERFUL FISHINO — VISIT OF STANDING ELK. 

On the sixth day of June we continued our 
march. The first day was a severe and trying 
one, and will always be disagreeable to emigrants 
with loaded trains until Yankee skill shall per- 
fect what has already been begun in the search 
after water. The ridge or divide which is first 
crossed is fully twenty-eight miles to the first 
water or timber. On the summit there is evi- 
dence of Anglo Saxon pluck, which was evidently 
designed to be the accompaniment of a future 
central ranche. About midway between Lodge 
Pole Creek and Mud Springs, a well had been 
begun, nearly twenty feet across and two hun- 
dred feet deep, without reaching water. The 
road across the divide is smooth and broad ; but 
our first trip was in the hottest part of June, with 
the mercury at 101° above zero, and the infantry 
sufiered intensely. Bufililo gnats flitted wick- 
edly about, attacking neck and ears and every 
other accessible or exposed part of the body, and 



MUD SPRINGS. 65 

a sirocco-like wind drove tlie dust in our way 
as if determined either to petrify or melt us. 

The command halted for ten minutes every 
hour, and officers and men alike put handker- 
chiefs on the head and neck to secure all the pro- 
tection possible; yet there was no alternative 
but to undergo and go on. The ambulances soon 
filled with the lame and sun-struck, and every 
vacant space in the wagons was similarly occu- 
pied. No trees relieved the dismal monotony, 
and every halt brought into requisition the ser- 
vices of our patient surgeons. The tedious day 
at length spent itself, and we encamped at 31ad 
Springs, ^ust in time to receive the full benefit of 
a thunder-storm and small tornado, which grap- 
pled sternly with our canvas, and for a time 
threatened to unroof as well as drown us. At 
Mud Springs are both wood and water, but nei- 
ther are abundant. In midsummer, the dry 
sandy bed of the stream shows only here and 
there a few small pools; but the shovel will soon 
start it, and any train will find a full supply by 
patient labor for an hour. It is always possible 
to procure buftalo chips enough to boil cofieo 
and supply fuel for a camp oven, so that scarcity 
of timber in the immediate vicinity of water is 
not a serious embarrassment until snows cover 
the ground. Most trains wisely take some wood 
from camp to camp, and a little more perma- 
nency to this indispensable station on the route 

G* 



66 ABSARAKA. 

will insure supplies for sale to trains. A few 
log-cabi)is that have been the quarters of a mail 
guard and relay of mules, with a sergeant's party 
in charge, duly represent the dignity of the 
United States ; but no one will voluntarily re- 
main longer than to secure rest from the fatigue 
of the long journey of the previous day. 

The march of June 7th was only ten miles to 
Pumpkin Creek, which flows past Court-house 
Rock. This stream is ever flowing, and abund- 
ance of timber can be found in the canon near 
by. The rock itself is mainly composed of sand, 
hard pan, and clay, so that it is easily chopped 
with the hatchet, and thus steps are made for 
those who have the nerve and patience to climb 
to its top, nearly six hundred feet above the water 
of the creek. A few of our party accomplished 
the feat, Adj utant Phisterer taking the lead. The 
ascent is quite easy, but peculiar. The notches 
receive the toes and about half the foot, and the 
hands grasp the gaps above to support the body 
and keep its gravity within the line of danger. 
The return trip is not so pleasant, as the heels 
take the place of the toes and the back rests upon 
the bluff itself, just as the body was inclined for- 
ward during the ascent. The view from the 
summit is very fine ; and far ofl" to the northwest 
looms up the equally singular proportions of 
Chimney Rock. Centuries of exposure have 
evidently wrought their changes upon the great 



COURT-HOUSE ROCK. 



67 



face of Court-house Rock, and constant waste is 
now so rapidly changing its proportions that, 
even in 1867, it had lost some of that boldness 
of definition which in 1866, and for years before, 
had made it such a noted landmark to the trav- 
eler. 

The old road and the telegraph route deflect 
to the right about six miles before reaching the 
rock : but the present route saves nearly five 
miles of distance and is more readily made, al- 
though somewhat more rolling and sandy. 




COURT-HOUSE ROCK-FROM THE EAST. 

The above sketch of Court-house Rock will 
preserve its outline and present character; but, 



68 



ABSABAKA. 



like all other odd aud wild things in that region, 
it will soon become the prey of innovation and 
the mastery of Time. 

The mounted infantry pitched their tents in 
the basin of the caiion, a short distance from the 
beautiful grove of cottonwood that lies at the 
very base of the rock, and the novel scenery 
made an afternoon pass pleasantly. 

Twelve miles farther on we find Brown's ranche 
on the North Platte, and five miles more brings 
the traveler to Chimney Rock. "While substan- 




CHIMNEY RUCK-HIUM HIE LAST. 



SCOTT'S BLUFFS. 69 

springs from the apex of a true cone, and is 
nearly three hundred and eighty feet high. It 
stands about five hundred feet from the bluff of 
which it was once a portion, and close to the 
level at which the cone leaves the general sur- 
face of the plain there is a stratum of true lime- 
stone, six feet in depth, interspersed with fossils 
indicating its origin, and closely resembling that 
of the quarries of Central Ohio. Chimney Bock 
is fast gathering about it the debris of waste, and 
will soon lose the bold outline and marked sym- 
metry of its present proportions. It is now much 
more beautiful than when Fremont visited it, 
and is worn to such a fine delineation that it 
seems that the first summer's storm or winter's 
blast must topple it from its base and destroy it 
utterly. 

Fifteen miles farther on we passed Terry's 
ranche, opposite Fortification Eocks, and ap- 
proached Scott's Blufi's. These are also of mixed 
clay and sand, plentifully supplied with fossils, 
and throw a spur across the Platte basin so as to 
compel the traveler to leave the river and make 
a long detour to the south, or to pass through 
the blufira themselves. This passage is by a tor- 
tuous gorge where wagons can seldom pass each 
other ; and at times the drifting snows or sands 
almost obscure the high walls and battlements 
that rise several hundred feet on either side. 
Cedar-trees climb to their very summit and crop 



70 ABSARAKA. 

out in every canon ; and although these seem to 
the unpracticed eye like little shrubs clinging to 
the clilis, the enterprising visitor who climbs to 
their nestling-place finds them to be full-grown 
trees of large diameter and proportionate height. 

Fortification Kocks were so named in 18G6 ; 
and at sunset the terraces and bastions, the pin- 
nacles and turrets are quite a good embodiment 
of one's natural idea of old-time fortifications on 
a grand and comprehensive scale. 

Almost immediately after leaving the Bluffs, 
and at the foot of the descent, after the gorge is 
passed, we find Fort Mitchell. This is a sub- 
post of Laramie of peculiar style and compact- 
ness. The walls of the quarters are also the out- 
lines of the fort itself, and the four sides of the 
rectangle are respectively the quarters of officers, 
soldiers, and horses, and the warehouse of sup- 
plies. "Windows open into the little court or 
parade-ground; and bed-rooms, as well as all 
other apartments, are loop-holed for defense. 

June 12th. We marched twenty-one miles to 
Cold Spring or Cold Creek, which is a beautiful 
stream, thirty feet wide, emptying into the south 
channel of the North Platte. 

As the Ottawa and St. Lawrence, or the jVil5- 
souri and Mississippi retain their distinctive char- 
acteristics for many miles after their nominal 
union, so when Cold Creek strikes the south arm 
of the North Platte, it does not mingle with its 



WONDERFUL FISHING. 71 

muddy current, but each occupies its own half 
of the swollen stream, and so runs on its race. 

A novel incident, valuable to mention for the 
information of other travelers, occurred shortly 
before sunset, which resulted in a bountiful sup- 
ply of fine fresh fish for all who desired them. 
Sergeant Barnes took up the idea that he would 
fish at the junction of the two streams, and actu- 
ally hooked a fine mountain pike. The news 
soon spread, and the soldiers gathered from all 
directions. For want of proper tackle a seine 
was extemporized. Gunny sacks were sewn to- 
gether, mule shoes were fastened to the bottom 
for dead weight, and quartermaster's hay forks 
were borrowed to guide the net. Then a strong 
party waded in neck deep, and with one end of 
this seine held firmly to shore, made a half circle 
with the remainder, bringing it all back to land. 
To the great amazement of spectators and actors, 
just where the eddies, at the meeting of the two 
rivers, struggled to keep by themselves, there 
was a fine school of pike. A few hauls soon 
landed over a hundred, varying in weight from 
one to four pounds. Their hard white meat was 
excellent, and made amends for the ridiculous 
stupidity of the fish and the simplicity of their 
method of capture. They evidently were unac- 
customed to visits from the white man, or could 
not see his approach through the turbid waters 
of their neighbor Platte until too late for escape. 



72 ABSARAKA. 

Up to this time we had invariably found suffi- 
cient grass for all stock, and the Platte was always 
at hand for water. 

The next day the troops forded this beautiful 
creek about half a mile from its mouth, and after 
eighteen mile's march we encamped above Jules 
Coffee's rauche, four miles east of Laramie. 
Here two of our best sergeants were drowned, 
being carried away by the current while bathing. 

Just about sunset, "Standing Elk" — a fine spe- 
cimen of the Brule Sioux, and who, in company 
with "Spotted Tail," "Two Strike," and "Swift 
Bear," again visited us at McPherson in 1867 — 
called to pay his respects, receive a present of to- 
bacco, and have a talk. He asked us where we 
were going, and was very frankly told the destina- 
tion of the command. He then told us that "a 
treaty was being talked about at Laramie with a 
great many Indians, some of whom belonged in the 
country to which we were going; but that the 
tishtingmen of those bands had not come in, and 
would not; but that we would have to tight them, 
as they would not sell their hunting-grounds to 
the white men for a road." He exhibited all indi- 
cations of sincere friendship, and said that he and 
Spotted Tail would sign the treaty and would 
always be "friends." His pledge, thus given for 
both, and renewed at Fort McPherson in June, 
186T, and often afterward, was fully redeemed, 
and our first interview with the Indians of the 




HK-HA-KA-A-NA-ZIN. 

StuiiiliiHj Elk. — Dficotdli Sioux. 



Page 72. 



FORT LARAMIE COUNCIL. 73 

Northwest was both the assurance of the friend- 
ship of some, and the bitter animosity and opposi- 
tion of many. It was proof that the careful march- 
ing, guarding of trains, and precautions against 
annoyance or intercourse with Indians had been 
judicious, and was equally suggestive of like pru- 
dence as the expedition advanced. Thus far, 
with the exception of Little Dog's rifle, which 
had been duly returned, not an Indian had suf- 
fered from injury at the hands of the command, 
and those who had visited the various camps had 
been kindly treated, and parted as friends. 



CHArTEPv YIII. 

FOKT LAKAMIE COUNCIL OP 1S66 — ITS EESrLTS FOEESHADOWED 

THE ABORIGI>'ES IX THE MAKT OF TRADE — HOW THE tS'- 

DIAXS DID AXD DID KOT. 

Fort Laramie was the center of important in- 
terests to the people of the West in June, 1866, 
and subsequent events show how important were 
the negotiations then begun, and how disastrous 
and costly have been the consequences of that 
false security as to the animus and purposes of 
the Indians of the Northwest which jDervaded 
the country until the beginning of the year 1867. 

The Peace Commission was in session. It was 
7 



74 ABSARAKA. 

accredited from the highest sources and had in 
charge great interests. The proposed general 
peace with the Sioux, the Arrapahoes, and the 
Cheyennes, and their anticipated surrender of 
the right of way to Virginia City, by Powder 
Run and along the Big Horn mountains — our 
very route — were matters of personal interest, 
independent of the difficulties that would be in 
the way of successfully building new forts and 
fighting Indians with a command that was barely 
sufficient to do its expected work on the basis of 
a permanent and reliable peace. 

General Cooke had closed a published circular 
with the emphatic and cheering assurance that 
" there must be peace," and from leaving Fort 
Kearney all pains had been taken to avoid col- 
lision with Indian hunting parties who were on 
their way to Laramie, or who were moving to 
and fro in anticipation of such a visit when the 
council was really ready. 

Our trains were habitually formed in a hollow 
square or corral, upon reaching camping grounds, 
fo insure the safety of stock at night, while 
pickets and mounted parties carefully guarded 
all animals on herd as soon as they were turned 
loose. The strictest discipline was enforced, and 
nothing was left undone that the energy and am- 
bition of the officers could accomplish to instruct 
new recruits and prepare them for the labor and 
possible conflicts that the future might unfold. 



FORT LARAMIE COUNCIL. 75 

No bartering with Indians was permitted un- 
der any circumstances; but all Indians who really 
wished an interview had the privilege of visiting 
headquarters, and there received kind attention 
and some little gifts, like tobacco or old gar- 
ments, but never arms, powder, or whisky. 

Oar camp near Laramie was therefore located 
close enough for bnsiness, but far enough away 
to prevent the mingling of the troops and Indians 
for any purposes — thus avoiding the possibility 
of collisions growing out of trades in furs, beads, 
and other articles, in which the Indian is gener- 
ally the unlucky one, and often exhibits his 
disappointment by becoming revengeful and 
wicked. 

The next day, June 14th, wagons were sent to 
the fort for one hundred thousand rounds of rifle 
ammunition, and to perfect the arrangement for 
supplies for the upper posts to be built in the new 
district. Unfortunately there happened to be at 
the fort not a single thousand rounds for infantry 
arms such as are used in the army; so it was as- 
sumed that we should have a happy journey, a 
happy peace, and a happy future. Twenty-six 
wagons of additional provisions were ready, with 
the single drawback that drivers had to be fur- 
nished from the command; but this nice economy 
had the effect, practically, to put that number of 
soldiers hors de combat, in case of any trouble re- 
quiring soldiers, and thus disposed of some of the 



76 ABSARAKA. 

best of our men. Major Bridger told us that lie 
had seen hegs of powder distributed to the In- 
dians and carried away on their ponies; but this 
gave no concern, as there was none for us. 

The next day came shopping, which busied our 
little coterie of ladies, and it certainly had claims 
to novelty in its associations and incidents. 

The long counter of Messrs. Bullock and 
Ward was a scene of seeming confusion not sur- 
passed in any popular, overcrowded store of 
Omaha itself. Indians, dressed and half dressed 
and undressed ; squaws, dressed to the same de- 
gree of completeness as their noble lords; pa- 
pooses, absolutely nude, slightly not nude, or 
wrapped in calico, buckskin, or furs, mingled 
with soldiers of the garrison, teamsters, emi- 
grants, speculators, half breeds, and interpret- 
ers. Here, cups of rice, sugar, cotfee, or flour 
were being emptied into the looped-up skirts or 
blanket of a squaw; and there, some tall warrior 
was grimacing delightfully as he grasped and 
sucked his long sticks of peppermint candy. 
Bright shawls, red squaw cloth, brilliant calicoes, 
and flashing ribbons passed over the same counter 
with knives and tobacco, brass nails and glass 
beads, and that endless catalogue of articles 
which belong to the legitimate border traflic. 
The room was redolent of cheese and herring, 
and " heap of smoke;" while the debris of mounched 
crackers lying loose under foot furnished both 



ABORIGINES IN THE MART OF TRADE. 77 

nutriment and employment for little bits of In- 
dians too big to ride on mamma's back, and too 
little to reach the good things on counter or 
shelves. 

The " Washta-la P^ [^'- very good") mingled with 
^^ Wan-nee-chee !" a very signiticant "Jio good," 
whether predicated of person or thing ; and the 
whole scene was a lovely episode, illustrating the 
habits of the noble red man in the mart of trade. 
Of course, all these Indians were thinking 
sharply, and many gave words to thought, so 
that an unsophisticated stranger might well doubt 
whether Bedlam or Babel were the better proto- 
type of the tongues in use. The Cheyenne sup- 
plemented his words with active and expressive 
gestures, while the Sioux amply used his tongue 
as well as arms and lingers. 

To all, however, whether white man, half- 
breed, or Indian, Mr. Bullock, a Virginia gentle- 
man of the old school, to whose hospitality and 
delicate courtesy we were even more indebted 
in 1867, gave kind and patient attention, and his 
clerks seemed equally ready and capable, talking 
Sioux, Cheyenne, or English just as each case 
came to hand. 

Outside everything was characteristic of the 
existing state of afiairs, not to say prophetic of 
the future; and literal truth, in all its details, 
would furnish unrivaled scenes for stereoscopic 

views of Indian character and characteristics. 

7* 



•78 ABSAEAKA. 

The council chamber was of course the first 
object of interest to us ladies after the shopping 
had been completed; and while the gentlemen 
were busy at quartermaster and commissary de- 
tails, the ladies visited it. Pine boards had been 
arranged as benches in front of one set of quar- 
ters, and over these boards were once fresh ever- 
greens. There was a unique and perfect sim- 
plicity in the arrangement, and such considerate 
abandon of all state and ceremony that no Indian 
need feel that he was kept at an awful distance, 
or must approach the agents of the Great Father 
with solemn awe or grave obeisance. 

Under the eaves of all buildings, by doorsteps 
and porches, and generally everywhere, were 
twos, threes, or larger groups of hungry, masti- 
cating Indians of all sizes, sexes and conditions, 
covered with every conceivable degree of super- 
ficial clothing or adornment, with the special ele- 
ment of cleanliness just as critically wanting as 
is usual among the Indians of the JSTorthwest. 

During a long journey we had anticipated with 
more or less pleasure an attendance upon some 
of the deliberations, and it was understood that 
the colonel had, without success, requested au- 
thority to remain at Laramie during the treaty, 
in order to become acquainted with the Indians 
and learn both their disposition and decision as 
to the new route we were to travel and occupy. 
But he hurried everybody up, kept his men to 



END OF THE COUNCIL. 79 

the camp, and our stay was cut down to the ac- 
tual necessities of a marching command. Be- 
sides this, it seemed that during the little time 
we did stop some Indians had been sent for other 
Indians, and the Indians who actually held pos- 
session of the route in dispute were not on hand 
when they were wanted. 

" The Man afraid of his Horses" and "Red 
Cloud " made no secret of their opposition, and 
the latter, with all his fighting men, withdrew 
from all association with the treaty-makers, and 
in a very few days quite decidedly developed his 
hate and his schemes of mischief. 

There being nothing to see therefore but loaf- 
ing Indians, and great work to be done in prep- 
aration for winter and securing defensive posi- 
tions before the rising war-cloud should break, 
we were all as eager to move on as the colonel was 
persistent in hurrying us forward. Some of the 
chiefs, however, were seen by the oflicers, and 
when they knew that the command was going 
to the Powder River country in advance of any 
treaty agreement, they gave unequivocal demon- 
strations of their dislike. One pleasant intima- 
tion was given that " in two moons the command 
would not have a hoof left." Another with great 
impressiveness thus explained his crude ideas : 
*' Great Father sends us presents and wants new 
road, but white chief goes with soldiers to steal 



80 ABSARAKA. 

road before Indian say yes or no !" Some of us 
called this good logic. 

Just as the troops left, one of the commission- 
ers came to our ambulance and advised that very 
little dependence should be placed upon the re- 
sult of the deliberations so far as the new road 
was concerned, for a messenger sent out to the 
Indians had been whipped and sent back with 
contempt. This was the conviction of all of us ; 
still the ladies kept up good heart, and as they 
could not well go back, concluded to go on, but 
agreed to limit their riding on horseback to the 
vicinity of the train. 

On the 17tli of June, though it was the Sab- 
bath, we passed Laramie, and camped at the 
Nine Mile ranclie, on the Platte. "We bade fare- 
well to Laramie with great composure and no 
regrets. Its iTorth Platte and Laramie Rivers, 
its Laramie Peak, nearlj^ sixty miles distant, and 
its adventitious charms as the locality of the 
Laramie treaty sum up all its attractions. As 
at elegantly built Leavenworth, so at Laramie, 
water is hauled from the rivers, and a respect- 
able lire would be ignorant of water in about a 
minute after it began. 

This post was neglected, as were all frontier 
stations, during the war; being occupied by 
changing garrisons, whose jack-knives and bajo- 
nets, so useful in their proper sphere, had pretty 
much used up the pine and plaster wherever 



FORT LARAMIE. j»l 

those appendages were ornamental or useful; 
while the parade-ground was as barren and 
ignorant of sod as the great highway to Salt 
Lake City itself. General Dandy, the post 
quartermaster, with his good taste and skill, 
had, in 1866, originated a perfect plan to secure 
an exhaustless supply of water, at reasonable 
cost, and should his successor carry his plans 
into effect, much can be done to redeem the for- 
lornness of the station. 

Laramie has been a profitable place for traders, 
and not a few ranchemen and citizens have squaw 
wives, and a large Indian traffic; but with some 
exceptions, it was to us the most inhospitable 
and barren post on our trip. It was then a four- 
company post, but was reinforced during the 
autumn, thus giving rise to the report of General 
Sanborn, special Indian Commissioner, afterward 
published, that, "in 1866, at Fort Laramie, when 
all was peace, there were twelve companies of 
regular troops; while at Fort Philip Kearney, 
where all was war, only four companies were 
allowed^ 

Fortunately, this garrison proved ample for 
the defense of Fort Laramie, and the post was 
still safe on our return in 1867. 



82 ABSARAKA. 



CHAPTER IX. 

LARAMIE TO RENO — CAMP PHISTERER CANON — LARAMIE I'EAK 
— WILD FLORA — PUMPKIN BUTTES. 

On the 18tli of June, at three o'clock a.m., the 
bugle call started us from "Nine Mile ranche," 
and we were at last directly en route for our new 
home, passing the Dry Branch of Warm Spring, 
Bitter Cottonwood Creek, and, after a march of 
sixteen miles, camped on "Little Bitter Cotton- 
wood," where there was an ample supply of tim- 
ber, water, and grass. 

June 19th. After eighteen miles of advance 
we came to the most remarkable defile through 
which the Platte urges its way in its passage 
from the Rocky Mountains. The river, which 
along the line of the march from Laramie had 
coursed through a prairie-like bottom, here sud- 
denly makes a short curve of half a circle to the 
right, then, after passing for a few hundred feet 
between precipitous cliflts, suddenly turns to the 
left by another short curve, nearly resuming the 
direction of its original northwestern course, and 
again running through the prairie as before it 
sought its peculiar hiding-place. 

The eastern face of this gorge is perpendicular, 
and nearly four hundred feet in height. On 



CAMP PHISTERER CANON. 83 

either side of the entrance are conical summits, 
of even greater elevation, which stand like sturdy 
sentinels, but having many natural terraces, on 
which are placed long lines of cedars as true and 
uniform in method as if the subject of system- 
atic arrangement. The one on the right is ba- 
saltic, and as truly significant of its volcanic 
origin as are the Palisades of the Hudson, or 
East and West Rocks, near New Haven, Con- 
necticut; and no part of the great wall which 
hems in the Niagara Hiver, below the falls, has 
more stern and prison-like proportions. One or 
two of the ladies, with Adjutant Pbisterer and 
Dr. Horton, went around the first curve, quite 
within the gorge, to hunt for agates and try the 
efi:ect of pistol shots, the echoes of which were 
startling and many times repeated. The deep, 
dark waters are closely pent in and shaded by 
these confines, so as never to enjoy the sunlight; 
but all of us enjoyed the sublimity and grandeur 
of this wonderful natural curiosity. Old Major 
Bridger, in his peculiarly quaint and sensible 
way, dropped the sentiment: "Better not go fur. 
There is Injuns enough lying under wolf skins, 
or skulking on them cliffs, I warrant! They 
follow ye always. They've seen ye, every day, 
and when ye don't see any of 'em about, is just 
the time to look out for their devilment." The 
experience of the next morning confirmed his 
suspicions. 



84 



ABSARAKA. 



As this was the last camp before the final cross- 
ing of the Platte and entrance upon the territory 
of the Mountain District, it was named Camp 
Phisterer, in honor of Adjutant Phisterer, who 
selected the site, and was most conspicuous in 
all that contributed to the pleasure or progress 
of the march. 




CAJIP PHISTERER CANON 




X;)th Platte River, D. T. 

June 20th. Mne miles of travel brought us 
to Bridger's Ferry. Here we learned that In- 
dians had, on the previous morning, made a 
descent upon the stock of Mr. Mills, the pro- 
prietor of the Ferry ranehe, although his wife 
was a Sioux, and, besides his half-breed children, 



CROSSING THE NORTU PLATTE. 85 

an Indian lived with him in his employ. This 
Indian had promptly pursued and recovered part 
of the stock, which they undoubtedly supposed 
belon2:ed to emic-rants. This Indian said that 
the marauders were "Bad Faces," of Red Cloud's 
hand, and that we would certainly have trouble 
if men or animals were permitted to stray from 
the command. Major Bridger and Mr. Brannan 
were of the same opinion ; and both claimed, as 
they had at Laramie, that we were advancing 
directly in the face of hostilities; and Major 
Bridger went so far as to affirm that the presents 
which were made to Indians at Laramie were 
given to positive enemies, or to those who had 
no influence at all over the warlike bands of the 
Big Horn and Powder River country. 

Our next movement was to cross the ITorth 
Platte. The beef herd was forced into the 
deep, swift current, and compelled to swim, and 
as a hundred men on the south bank kept them 
from returning, all were safely drifted across. 
The train and command crossed in the ferry- 
boat, which ingeniously works its own way to 
and fro by such adjustment of cables and pulleys, 
and such adaptations to the current, that the 
round trip was made in about eleven mmutes. 

The march of June 22d was sixteen miles, 
finding wood, water, and grass in abundance. 

The march of the 23d was fifteen miles, with 
ample supplies of all kinds at our camp on the 



86 ABSARAEA 

I^ortli Platte, near the mouth of Sage Creek. 
In the morninu: we turned northward from the 





EAST VIEW OF NORTU PLATTE, 1 MILES EAST OF MOUTH OF SAGF. CREEK. 

The road has crossed the ridge of aaiiil hills, reachiny point nearly 

ojiposite Fort Fetterman. 

Platte, passing over the red buttes and lofty sand 
hills and rocky ridges which rise at least live 
hundred feet above the valley, and these proved 
in a few places to be very difficult for the more 
heavily loaded wagons. Occasionally the wind- 
ings of the river are seen far beneath, and when 
the road has completed its circuit, and returning 
descends to the river, the panorama is exceed- 
ingly beautiful. 

The river can be traced backward for miles in 
all its course, bordered on the north by the blufls 



FRENCH PETE. gt 

just crossed, and on the soutli by the nearly level 
plains, which, with slight moditication, extend as 
far west as Platte bridge, at Fort Caspar. ISTear 
this point a new fort is being erected, with the 
certainty that Fort Caspar will soon be aban- 
doned or treated as an immaterial position on 
the route. 

Just before reaching the basin, where the Fort 
Reno road turns northward, following Sage 
Creek, and the northern Mormon road passes 
westward toward Salt Lake City, we found an 
extemporized shed of boards, where Louis Gaz- 
zons (French Pete), with his Sioux wife and 
half-breed children, were opening their merchan- 
dise to catch travel over the new route. Here 
the inevitable display of canned fruits, liquors, 
tobacco, beads, cutlery, crackers, and cheese 
were modestly conspicuous, and the good-hearted 
trader decidedly congratulated himself that he 
had the first stock of goods on the route to the 
land of game and gold. Little did he anticipate 
the doom that awaited him. Mrs. Dr. Horton 
was the recipient of a young antelope from Louis, 
and for months after we were well settled at 
Phil Kearney, this antelope, a spotted fawn, and 
two colts of Captain Ten Eyck, had each even- 
ing a spirited scamper on the parade-ground, 
until Indians stole the ponies and the antelope 
poisoned himself by the substitution of fresh 
paint for his usual treat of sweet milk. 



88 ABSARAKA. 

French Pete will be remembered as the first 
citizen killed during that campaign, and especi- 
ally as his long course of trade and intimacy 
with the Indians seemed to promise, at least for 
himself and ftimily, some considerable favor if 
not entire immunity at their hands. 

June 24th. Marched fourteen miles; camped 
at the head of Sage Creek; found water, but 
used sage brush and buftalo chips for fuel. 
Tufts of buffalo grass were scattered between 
the sage brush and cactus, so that the herds 
found forage without any considerable departure 
from the camp. 

June 25th. Marched fifteen miles, and camped 
on the South Fork of the Cheyenne, where there 
is plenty of grass and timber; but the great 
body of the water, in extremely dry weather, 
passes under the sand and needs slight digging 
to start it to the surface and secure an abundant 
supply. At the middle of this day's march, just 
at the summit of the divide, there is the best 
view of Laramie Peak, showing its peculiar 
formation, where cone after cone rises gradually 
until a central shoot overtops them all. 

June 26th. Was enlivened by a successful at- 
tempt to open a shorter route to Wind River, 
avoiding Humphrey's old camp; and after a 
march of twenty miles we found wood, grass, 
and water, besides realizing a gain of over five 
miles in the general line of travel. 



BIG HORN MOUNTAINS. 89 

June 27th. Marched twenty-one miles, to the 
Dry Branch of Powder River, finding wood, 




LARAMIE PEAK— FROM THE NORTH, 
5900 /eei above sea level, 

grass, and water, though the grass was largely 
intermingled with the inevitable sage brush and 
cactus. Early in the morning we obtained our first 
view of the Big Horn Mountains, at a distance 
of eighty miles, and it was indeed magnificent. 
The sun so shone as to foil with tull blaze upon 
the southern and southeastern sides as they rose 
toward Cloud Peak, which is nine thousand feet 
above the level of the sea, and the whole range 
so closely blended with the sky as to leave it in 
doubt whether all was not a mass of bright cloud ; 

8* 



90 ABSARAKA. 

while many, even with the aid of a glass, in- 
sisted that they were immense gleaming sand 
hills, with no snow at all. In half an hour the 
air itself was invigorated by the currents from 
the snow banks ; and even at that distance shawls 
became necessary, the ambulance side curtains 
were closed, and it seemed as if a November day 
was to succeed the summer's morning, -4n front, 
and a little to the northeast, could be seen the 
four columns of Pumpkin Buttes, nearly twenty- 
three miles east of Fort Reno. These buttes are 
landmarks for the traveler from all directions, 
and nearly seven hundred feet high. East of 
them lie the Black Hills of Dakota, and the once 
talked of direct route from Sioux City to Reno 
and Yirgiuia City,ywhich has been referred to in 
connection with the pamphlet of Colonel Sawyer 
published by the government. 

July 28th. Passed Buffalo Springs, and down 
the Dry Fork of Powder River, sixteen miles, and 
over one divide, to Fort Reno. 

The road, from early morning, was in the 
very bed of the stream, which, but a few inches 
deep, was constantly crossed by the train, and 
being bordered by abrupt ledges of lignite, clay, 
and sand, is surely indicative of an abundance, if 
not a surfeit, of water during the thaws of spring; 
while, for nearly twelve miles, the traveler is 
hemmed in and confined to this narrow basin, 
subject to constant exposure and annoyance from 



POWDER RIVER 91 

Indian attacks. The grass is poor, but wood and 
water are abundant. Many cottonwood-trees 
have been felled by travelers and Indians for the 
bark with which to feed both mules and horses; 
but this leaves a supply of dry wood equal to the 
increasing demand. 

Our first view of Fort Reno was most unpre- 
possessing; but, expecting it to be abandoned, 
its ugliness and barrenness did not so decidedl}' 
shock the sensibilities as if it had been gazed 
upon as a permanent home, or even a transient 
dwelling-place. We passed through more than 
a mile of river bottom, densely studded with large 
Cottonwood trees, and after fording Powder Eiver, 
encamped just south of the fort, glad to have ac- 
complished more than five hundred miles of our 
journey with such substantial success. 

Before long, some enterprising post com- 
mander will recommend the final demolition of 
the fort, or shrewd emigrants will avoid it, by 
carrying out the feasible project for a short cut- 
ofi' under the Big Horn Mountains, which was 
partially inaugurated in 1866, and which affords 
abundant supplies of grass, as well as an equal 
amount of timber with the present location. 

So we were finally at Powder River. We had 
known some such hot days as are never found in 
the Eastern or Middle States ; had drank water 
that had small virtue beyond its name and moist- 
ure; had used sage brush and bufialo chips for 



92 ABSARAKA. 

variety of fuel ; but, so far, were all rigM and 
even fast seeing the country. The cactus, which 
annoys a horse as much as it does the pedestrian, 
had partly compensated for its thongs and sting 
by the beauty of its blossoms ; and the prolific 
sage brush had imparted odor as well as fuel, and 
thus regaled the sense while it heated our coffee. 

The wild tulip, larkspur, sweet pea, convol- 
vulus, and a vine, closely resembling the Mexican 
plant, were among the flora that were abundant, 
and these, with others, were duly pressed for fu- 
ture care and admiration. The Indian potato 
and wild onion were gathered constantly by the 
men, and both are valuable when antiscorbutics 
are scarce and salt pork most abundant. 

The march which brought us to Reno closed 
up all possibility of meeting any resident traders ; 
and indeed, with the exception of the fort itself, 
there was then not a resident white man between 
Bridger's Ferry and Bozeman City, Montana. We 
were about to pass the last log-cabin, and realize 
practically the experience of pioneers and test 
our own capacity for building, keeping house, and 
living in the land of Absaraka! Single trains of 
emigrants had passed through the country. Boze- 
man had made one trip and had succeeded ad- 
mirably in the selection of his route, and our 
sterling friend Bridger had a head full of maps 
and trails and ideas, all of the utmost value to 
the objects of the expedition. So we stopped at 
Reno, to prepare for the next, and final advance! 



FORT RENO. 93 



CHAPTER X. 

FORT KENO — INDIAN RAID — FORT LARAMIE TREATY TESTED — - 
FOURTH OF JULY IN ABSARAKA — ORGANIZATION OF MOUNT- 
AIN DISTRICT — ONWARD MOVEMENT — MORE RATTLESNAKES 
— MERCURY ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTEEN DEGREES ABOVE 
ZERO WHAT IT DID. 

/ Fort Reno was first located in 1865, under the 
name of Fort Connor. 

Absolute sterility excludes all elements of veg- 
etable beauty or production. The single redeem- 
ing feature is the fact that the river bottom for 
miles in either direction is abundantly supplied 
with timber, so that emigrants will always find 
the material for fuel or building: but the same 
old sage brush and cactus persistently monopolize 
the soil for miles, and Powder River itself, fiow- 
ing from the south side of the Big Horn Mount- 
ains, is muddy and so strongly alkaline as to be 
prejudicial to both man and beast. 

In June, 1866, Fort Reno was an open post, 
except that the warehouses and stables had a 
rough stockade. Officers' and men's quarters, 
guard-house and magazine, were on the open 
plain. Being nearly one hundred and forty feet 
above the river, the water was brought up in 
wagons, and no eflective eflbrt had been made to 



94 ABSARAKA. 

seek for better water than that of the river, al- 
though, after our second day in camp, a spring 
of clear water was discovered, by the enterprise 
of the mounted command, immediately under the 
bluff. Subsequently it was decided to retain the 
post as part of the district command. JSTew build- 
ings were erected, the parade was inclosed, suita- 
ble bastions and block-houses were built, and a 
substantial stone magazine was completed under 
the immediate direction of Captain Proctor. 

At the date of our arrival the garrison con- 
sisted of two companies of the 5th United States 
Volunteers, who were simply waiting to be re- 
lieved before proceeding eastward to be mustered 
out of service. A company of Winnebago In- 
dians had been at the fort, and we passed them 
near Laramie on the 17tli of June. Many of 
them wished to go back with us, but there was 
no existing authority to employ them, and it was 
generally understood and distinctly affirmed by 
Major Bridger that some of the Sioux at Lara- 
mie expressly demanded, as a condition of their 
own consent to peace, that these Indians should 
leave the country. If this be true, it was sharp 
in the Sioux, for the service lost its best scouts, 
and no depredations had taken place about Reno 
while it was known that they were there. Upon 
the first alarm these Winnebagoes would spring 
to their ponies, with ritle and lariat, regardless 
of rations or clothing, and, with one good 



CAMP AT FORT RENO. 95 

whoop, disappear in pursuit. Being deadly ene- 
mies of the Sioux, it is not to be wondered that 
the latter should wish them out of the coun- 
try ; but until peace could be absolutely realized, 
it would have been no prejudice to that line of 
operations, as events transpired, to have had a 
few soldiers who knew the Indian styles of war- 
fare, and were up to their tricks. 

Nevertheless, the Winnebagoes departed, and 
their substitutes were not provided. So, as we 
began to live in Absaraka, we began to learn 
contemporaneous history. 

Our camp at Fort Reno was adapted to the lo- 
cation. The mounted infantry were at the base 
of the hill, for ready access to water. Brevet 
Major Haymond's command was on the river's 
bank above, just over a slight rise, but out of 
sight from the fort. Headquarters tents were 
near the flag-staff, which had been located with 
view to some future expansion of the post for 
the accommodation of twelve companies. After 
a night's rest, everybody seemed busy. Three 
emigrant trains were in the river bottom waiting 
for the colonel's instructions as to their advance 
westward; and we were quite surprised to find 
that the lady travelers with those trains had no 
fear of Indians, and did not believe there were 
any had Indians on the route. One train cap- 
tain told us ladies we never would see an Indian 
unless he came to beg for sugar, flour, or tobacco. 



96 ABSARAKA. 

This was all very gratifying, as this captain had 
been many years on the Plains, and said "he 
couldn't be scared worth a continental." 

About ten o'clock the ladies went to the sut- 
ler's store of Messrs. Smith and Leighton to do 
some shopping. Suddenly a breathless messen- 
ger rushed in with the cr}'^ of '-'' Indians ^^ and said, 
as intelligibly as he could, that the sutlers' horses 
and mules were all gone. Sure enough, upon 
going to the door, the horses and mules were 
galloping up the hills across the river, while a 
party of Indians were following, throwing out 
flankers to keep the stock in the desired direc- 
tion, and evidently bending their course toward 
the Pumpkin Buttes. No doubt they had been 
eager observers of our progress, just as Major 
Bridger said, and no less watched the emigrants. 
Probably they supposed the small headquarters 
camp, with its large corral of wagons, was that of 
emigrants. At all events, they crossed the river 
through the timber, taking advantage of a deep 
ravine, and struck the herd suddenly without loss 
to themselves, yet passing two or three of our 
herds, which were under guard, without ven- 
turing an attack. 

At this unexpected message all became ac- 
tivity. The colonel was entering the door as the 
messenger gave the alarm. The bugle brought 
the mounted men to the saddle and Brevet Major 
Haymond and Lieutenant Adair led eighty men 



INDIAN RAID. 97 

in pursuit. It was excessively provoking to see 
the coolness of those Indians as they favored 
their ponies in bad places and seemed to calcu- 
late exactly how long they could take things 
easy and when they must hurry ; but they had 
not long to tarry, and soon were pressing their 
plunder at the top of their speed. 

Before the return of the party the next day, 
they had ridden nearly seventy miles, passing 
along the Pumpkin Buttes, but failed to recap- 
ture any of the stolen stock. But they brought 
in an Indian pony which the Indians abandoned 
when closely pressed; and this same pony was 
loaded with favors recently procured at Laramie. 
Among the variety were navy tobacco, brown 
sugar, a cavalry stable frock, calico dress-patterns, 
and other articles, which from their style and 
condition showed that they had not long since 
been taken from shelves or packages. 

Indeed, the opinion expressed by everybody 
was afterward confirmed from Laramie, and it 
was thus early understood that the Indians who 
received presents at that post had immediately 
violated their obligations and commenced a new 
career of robbery and war. 

Ten days were spent at Reno in arrangements 
to distribute the battalion, in reloading wagons, 
and relieving the companies of the 5th U. S. 
Volunteers. The mercury rose to 113° in the 
shade; wagon tires began to break or fall off*> 

9 



98 ABSARAKA. 

and there was no charcoal (so Mr. Brown said) 
for welding and putting them in order. The 
warehouse was full of old supplies, and these had 
to be invoiced and distributed, while the quantity- 
was twice or three times a complement for all the 
wagons of the command. 

Business was hurried, and it was decided to 
leave Captain Proctor and Lieutenant Kirtland 
with one company to guard the stores in depot 
until trains could be sent back for them and the 
fort could be dismantled. 

Meanwhile the Fourth of July came in its 
proper annual course, and the usual salute was 
fired, under the charge of Major Henry Almstedt, 
paymaster, an old artillery otiicer, and a welcome 
visitor at all times, especially just then, when a 
few things more were to be bought before launch- 
ing out in that wilderness, where, except Messrs. 
Beal and Hughes, our sutlers, there was nothing 
of civilization to be had. 

At length, on the morning of July 9th, at 4 
o'clock, the command started. Its organization 
was a matter of interest to us ladies, as there were 
but three wives of officers left after the parting at 
Lodge Pole Creek, and new partings were to be 
anticipated, to complete the constant series which 
began at Fort Sedgwick. 

Brevet Major Haymond, with two companies, 
had been assigned to the post on the Upper Yel- 
lowstone; Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Kinney, 



A LITTLE SCARE. 99 

with two companies, had been assigned to the 
post on the Big Horn River; and Captain Ten 
Ejck had been given command of the post at 
district headquarters, new Fort Reno, to which 
the change of post was to be made. By a mail 
received before starting, we learned from the 
oflicers that the order for a battalion of the 13th 
U. S. Infantry, to operate from Fort Reno east- 
ward, had been countermanded, and thus we had 
no rivals to compete for the honors of opening, 
protecting, and defending the new route and ter- 
ritory of Absaraka. The news gave us women a 
little scare, which the officers did not condescend 
to notice; but they, no doubt, were all laboring 
under the infatuation that the second battalion, 
with its fresh recruits, could do perfectly what un- 
der ordinary circumstances would have required 
two or three regiments to accomplish. 

An order was posted at the sutler's store, tell- 
ing emigrants how to corral their trains, how to 
deal with or not deal with Indians, and how to 
procure authority for proceeding beyond the 
post; and it is a singular fact that every reported 
disaster to emigrant or other train during 1866 
would have been avoided, had the terms of that 
order been reasonably complied with. 

"We started westward July 9th, 1866. 

The twenty-six miles to Crazy "Woman's Fork, 
in the blazing sun, was a severe trial. It was 
fully night before camp Avas well established, and 



100 ABSARAKA. 

the next morning revealed the fact that half of 
our transportation was disabled, although in- 
spected daily and repaired according to all the 
means at hand. 

Crazy "Woman's Fork has been described in 
general terms. The stream, just at the crossing, 
makes a sharp turn, giving two separate fords, but 
having quite a steep ledge or bank on the east side 
as the traveler enters its basin, but on the west 
gradually rising to the summit of the divide be- 
tween its waters and those of Clear Creek. 

Inspection was made, timber was cut, a char- 
coal pit was fashioned and fired, and every avail- 
able blacksmith was put at work. 

One means of repair was resorted to which 
was supposed to be as novel as it was effective. 
Gunny sacks were cut in strips and thoroughly 
soaked in water. These strips were tacked on 
so nicely that when secured with the heated 
tires they not only withstood the summer's use, 
but even in the winter of 1867 some of those 
wagons were doing excellent service without ad- 
ditional repair. Of course this would only an- 
swer where tires were unbroken; neither could 
it be afforded that all the corn should be emp- 
tied, except as the expenditure of the journey 
should permit, and thus allow an accumulation 
of those empty. 

On the morning of the 12th, the companies 
that were to build "New Fort Reno" marched 



ANOTHER INDICATION OF INDIANS. 101 

witla headquarters to select and occupy its site. 
The four companies destined for the more dis- 
tant posts were left to perfect repairs and follow 
as soon as possible. Our first camp was at Clear 
Fork, just at noon, and its perfect beauty and 
completeness of natural supplies have been an- 
ticipated in the general description of this portion 
of Absaraka. Little episodes, of course, occurred 
here, as they did elsewhere. With Mrs. Ilorton 
and Mrs. Bisbee the splendid sunset was watched 
with real pleasure. Our camp chairs were near 
the tents on the banks of the creek. A chance 
interruption of our meditations led to the agree- 
able information that we were sitting just over 
three valuable rattlesnakes, which an orderly 
was kind enough to find and mangle to death. 
"We sat no more by the brink of Clear Fork, but 
dreamed of rattlesnakes until the bugle sounded 
the reveille the next day. 

On Friday the 13th we had our next indication 
of Indians. A few were seen upon a high hill 
to the left ; and after passing Rock Creek, close 
under a commanding ridge, our attention was 
called to two small pieces of cracker-box planted 
by the roadside, on which were notes in pencil, 
stating that two trains had been attacked on the 
previous Tuesday and Friday, and that some of 
the stock of each had been driven ofl:'. 

These were trains that were in advance of our 
expected arrival, but gained greater distance 
9* 



102 ABSARAKA. 

than they expected, through our detention at 
Crazy "Woman's Fork. 

At 11 o'clock A.M., July 13th, we had passed 
Lake Smedt and were in camp on Big Piney 
Fork, just east of the crossing of the Virginia 
City road, and about four miles from the Big 
Horn Mountains. At last, we had the prospect 
of finding a home, and Cloud Peak seemed to 
look down upon us with a cheerful face as the 
sunlight made his features glow and glisten. 



CHAPTER XL 



KECONNOISSANCES — INDIAN MESSENGERS — "WARNINGS — LOCA- 
TION OF FORT PHILIP KEARNEY — CONDUCT OF THE TROOPS, 
AND ITS CAUSE. 



The headquarters camp of the expedition of 
1866 was organized on the 13th of July of that 
year with special care, and greatly to the annoy- 
ance of teamsters, as the colonel had the corral 
formed three times until it was sufficiently com- 
pact and trim to suit him. 

At 1 o'clock he was off with a small party to 
visit the surroundings as far back as the mount- 
ains, and seven miles westward, to determine the 
most eligible site for the post. A beautiful pla- 
teau had been passed just before the command 



RECONNOISSANCES. 103 

halted, which seemed particularly inviting; but 
as Major Bridger and Mr. Brannan had both 
urged that the valleys of Goose Creek and Tongue 
River should be first visited, no decision was an- 
nounced. 

On the morning of July 14th, at 5 o'clock, 
Colonel Carrington, Adjutant Phisterer, Quarter- 
master Brown, Captain Ten Eyck, Guide Bran- 
nan, and Jack Stead, interpreter, with a mounted 
escort, left for a reconnoissauce of the region of 
country which had such an exalted and wide- 
spread reputation as being the richest, loveliest, 
and grandest of all the lands of Absaraka, viz.. 
Tongue River valley. 

Brevet Captain Adair was ofiicer of the day, 
and all was unusually quiet in camp until nearly 
9 o'clock, when it was found that some men had 
deserted to seek the gold mines of Montana. A 
detail started in pursuit. They returned before 
noon with the tidings that they had been stopped 
by a band of Indians, were refused permission to 
go on, and were instructed to return at once with 
a message to the white chief, that he must take 
his soldiers out of the country. 

This party had met that same traveling ranche 
of Louis Gazzous about seven miles out, and a 
young man in his employ as teamster, who had 
been discharged by Lieutenant Brown at Fort 
Reno, had been impressed by the Indians to see 



104 ABSARAKA. 

that their message was correctlj delivered aud 
an answer returned. 

This lad brought peremptory orders for the 
white men to decide for peace or war, and if 
they wanted peace, to return at once to Powder 
River. They promised not to trouble the old 
post, but declared that they would not let sol- 
diers go over the road which had never been 
given to the whites, neither would they let them 
stay and build forts. These Indians were re- 
ported to be Ogillalla Sioux, under Red Cloud as 
their principal leader, and they had been nego- 
tiating for several days with certain bands of 
Cheyennes, with whom Louis Gazzous was trad- 
ing, to induce them to join on the war-path and 
obstruct the road and all travel upon it. French 
Pete had already traded for a great many skins, 
and was preparing to visit the camp to sell as 
many as he could to the officers and men of the 
command. 

The absence of the colonel induced Mr. Adair 
to detain the messenger in the guard tent, and 
shortly after an Indian messenger approached, 
but quickly retreated when he found that he was 
not promptly joined by the white man sent in 
advance. A demand had also been made that 
the white chief, in company with Jack Stead, 
whom they knew at Laramie, and whose wife 
was a Cheyenne squaw, should go and visit their 
village and settle the question of peace or war. 



INDIANS ALARMED. 105 

Shortly after 6 o'clock in the afternoon, and 
after an absence of thirteen hours, the colonel's 
party came in, having found two brush tepaht- 
(tepees or lodges), where there were signs of re- 
cent occupation by Indians; but as the detach- 
ment had crossed buttes and ridges nearer the 
mountains for the purpose of testing Major 
Bridger's recommendation that a new and shorter 
road should be opened to Tongue River valley, 
they met neither Cheyenne nor Sioux. 

After due examination, the prisoner was sent 
back, in company with Jack, to invite the prin- 
cipal chief and some of his braves to come into 
camp, when the sun was overhead, after two 
sleeps (at noon of Monday the 17th), and prom- 
ising that they should be kindly entertained and 
allowed to depart in safety. 

Jack returned the following night and reported 
that the Indians, having been alarmed by the 
protracted absence of their messenger, had moved 
ofi' to Tongue River, nearly thirty miles, under 
apprehensions of an attack, but he followed their 
trail, delivered his message, and secured their 
pledge to make the proposed visit. 

The reconnoissance of the day had settled the 
location of the fort, as Tongue River valley was 
not only more remote from 'pine timber, too far 
from Powder River, and less advantageous as a 
position, but its selection would have left to the 
Indians the control of the trails ab< lit Pinev's 



106 ABSARAKA. 

and Peno, and thus given them the very gate to 
Tongue River valley itself; while the abundance 
of grass, pure water, choice timber, and wild 
grain in the immediate vicinity of the site se- 
lected, left no necessity for those elements to be 
sought elsewhere. 

Accordingly, early next morning, July 15th, 
although Sunday, the camp, which had been tem- 
porarily on the low ground where the underbrush 
of the creek and dense cottonwood might afibrd 
shelter to an enemy, was abandoned, and the 
plateau before referred to was occupied. 

Very early in the morning, the colonel and 
Captain Ten Eyck, with the pioneer party, had 
staked out the dimensions of the future post, 
according to plans and drawings matured at old 
Fort Kearney in the spring ; while, to secure at 
the very outset a handsome and permanent 
parade-ground, the long train of wagons was re- 
peatedly driven about the designated rectangle, 
four hundred feet square, and officers, teamsters, 
and soldiers, alike were forbidden to cross, ex- 
cept by designated avenues, while a mowing 
machine soon cut the grass and gave the start to 
the present beautiful lawn of the Fort Phil 
Kearney Plaza. 

The tents were pitched along the streets ap- 
propriate to the respective building sites of of- 
ficers' and soldiers' quarters, warehouses, sutler's 
store, band quarters, and guard-house; while the 



A VISIT FROM GRASSHOPPERS. 101 

established general and picket guards, with the 
artillery parked on the parade, soon imparted 
form, comeliness, and system to the whole. 

By 12 o'clock a stranger might have supposed 
the camp to have been a fixture for weeks. 

We had one episode while moving: Black 
George ran in, in great haste, to tell missis that 
it was snowing, sure; while other reports were, 
that the grass of Peno valley had been fired by 
the Indians, and the smoke was already sweep- 
ing down upon us. All proved to be a compli- 
mentary visit from grasshoppers as large as 
locusts, and for a time it seemed as if wagon- 
covers and tents were all to be eaten up in just 
about five minutes. In vain were turkeys and 
chickens let loose against the destroyers : the 
whole camp hummed with the rustle of their 
wings as they filed themselves on the blades of 
grass and became familiar generally. A kind 
wind from the mountains came along in the af- 
ternoon, and they left as suddenly as they ar- 
rived. 

The scout of Friday afternoon had determined 
available points for ready acquisition of building 
timber, and, while Engineer J. B. Gregory was 
soon at work trying to put in shape and opera- 
tion a horse-power saw-mill until the steam mills 
should arrive, the whole garrison was broken 
into details for ditching, chopping, hauling, hew- 
ing, and such other varied duty as loomed up 



108 ABSARAKA. 

like a vast burden, to be overcome before winter 
should overtake us. 

ITeither was the undertaking a light one, as 
the district headquarters would at once become 
a partial depot, and supplies for a whole year 
had been estimated for, before the command left 
old Kearney. 

Subsequent events confirmed the wisdom of 
this immediate and incessant labor; for when 
cold weather actually developed its power there 
were no surplus quarters, and the eventual, con- 
stant hostilities no less demonstrated the value 
of the defense and the whole arrangement of the 
post. 

Thus, Monday morning was as busy in progress 
as Sunday had been necessarily occupied in loca- 
tion and occupation of the site. 

It was deemed wise also to secure something 
like shape and a tenable position before the ex- 
pected interview with the Indians, so as to give 
our visitors as good an impression as possible of 
our purposes and determination to remain. 

As the diagram and map furnished illustrate 
the plan and surroundings of Fort Philip Kearney 
so far as completed on the 1st of January, 1867, 
no further comment need be made than to say 
that, with all the prophecies and liabilities that 
the soldiers would desert for gold leads or dig- 
gings, it was found that their almost universal 



CONDUCT OF TUF TROOPS. 109 

impulse was cheerfully to take hold of every duty 
and put the work through. 

The fact that gold color had been found in the 
creek the very first day, perhaps combined with 
doubt as to the safety of deserting only to run 
the gantlet of hostile tribes, may have stimu- 
lated labor; but never did a command apply 
themselves more diligently to real hard work 
and exacting guard duty, nor did men ever ex- 
hibit more ready obedience and willing self- 
sacrifice, in order to carry out the plans requiring 
their co-operation in execution. 

To be sure, there was little kicking and cufiing 
and cursing administered, after the theory of 
some, that this is the acme of all discipline, and 
that soldiers are like cattle, to be worked by the 
whip and the yell; and instances of such dis- 
cipline were publicly reprimanded and corrected, 
but no work, however tedious, no exposure, how- 
ever protracted, no order, however sudden or 
urgent, failed to find Vtdlling and spirited re- 
sponse. Obedience was unquestioning and im- 
mediate; justice was equal and certain, and it 
was well understood that the colonel hated the 
popular theory of oaths and blows, while none 
the less positive in the enforcement of law. Fort 
Philip Kearney will be a monument of the spirit 
and skill of companies A, C, H, and E, 2d Bat- 
talion, 18th U. S. Infantry, now the 27th Regi- 
ment; and its own soldiers need not fear that 
10 



110 ABSAEAKA. 

any rivals will do more or better work, or do it 
under more adverse circumstances than was their 
mission in the summer and fall of the year of 
grace 1866. 



CHAPTER XII. 

ARRIVAL OP INDIANS — THE CHEYENNES IN COUNCIL — BLACK 
HORSE, THE RABBIT THAT JUMPS, RED SLEEVE, DULL 
KNIFE, AND OTHERS HAVE MUCH TALK AND "HEAP OF 

SMOKE." 

At twelve o'clock, June 16th, a few Indians 
appeared on the hills, and after showing a white 
flag and receiving assurance of welcome, about 
forty, including the squaws of chiefs and war- 
riors, approached the camp and bivouacked 
on the level ground in front. Meanwhile, hos- 
pital tents had been arranged for this first inter- 
view with the inhabitants of Absaraka. 

A table covered with the national flag was 
placed across one tent, chairs were placed be- 
hind and at the ends for officers of the garrison, 
while other seats were placed in front for 
visitors. 

Trunks were opened, epaulettes and dress 
hats were overhauled, so that whatever a full 
dress and a little ceremony could do by way of 
reaching the peculiar taste of the Indian for dig- 



THE CIIEYENNES IN COUNCIL. 11] 

nity and finery, was done. The band of the 
18th played without, as the principal chiefs were 
brought across the parade-ground to the tents 
and introduced to their seats by Mr. Adair. 
The Cheyennes came in full state, with their 
best varieties of costume, ornament, and arms; 
though there was occasionally a departure from 
even the Indian originality in apparel. One very 
tall warrior, with richly wrought moccasins and 
a fancy breech-cloth, had no other covering for 
his person than a large gay umbrella, which, 
as his pony galloped briskly up, had far more 
of the grotesque and ludicrous in its associations 
than it had of the warlike and fearful. 

Some were bare to the waist, others had only 
the limbs bare. Some wore elaborate necklaces 
of grizzly bears' claws, shells, and continuous 
rings, bead-adorned moccasins, leggings, tobacco 
pouches, medicine bags, aud knife scabbards, as 
Vv^ell as armlets, earrings, and medals. 

The larger silver medals included, one each, 
of the administrations and bore the medallion 
heads and names of Jefi:'erson, Madison, and 
Jackson. These medals had evidently belonged 
to their fathers who had visited Washington, or 
had been the trophies of the field or trade. 

Those who claimed pre-emiuence among the 
land were "Black Horse," "lied Arm," "Little 
Moon," "Pretty Bear," "The Rabbit that 
Jumps," "The Wolf that Lies Down," "The 



112 ABSARAKA. 

Man that Stands alone on the Ground," and 
"Dull Knife." 

As these were the Indians who had sent the 
message of the 14th, or were in their company, 
the question of their inclination and temper was 
one of no little interest to all. 

The formal assurance of the Laramie Peace 
Commission before its adjournment, that satisfac- 
tory peace had been made with the Ogillalla and 
Brule Sioux, and that the Arrapahoes and Chey- 
ennes had only to come in for their presents, in- 
spired some hope that possibly the reception of 
this first band encountered, might result in sub- 
stantial advantage beyond the mere range of the 
baud itself. 

As the front of the canvas was open, the ladies 
gathered in the headquarters tent close by, parted 
its folds and enjoyed a dress-circle view of the 
whole performance. As pipes passed and the 
inevitable *'Aoi^7," the rising up, and the shaking 
of hands were interludes between all solemn de- 
clarations, as well as the prelude to a new speech, 
or the approval of something good that had been 
said, the scene seemed just about as intelligible 
as a rapidly-acted pantomime would be to a per- 
fect stranger to the stage. 

The red-sandstone pipe had its frequent re- 
plenishing before a single "how" indicated that 
either visitor wished to make himself heard. The 
scene was peculiar. 



JAMES BRIDGER'S STORIES. 113 

In front of them all, and to the left of the 
table, sitting on a low seat, with elbows ou his 
knees and chin buried in his hands, sat the noted 
James Bridger, whose forty-four years upon the 
frontier had made him as keen and suspicious of 
Indians as an}' Indian himself could be of an- 
other. The old man, already somewhat bowed 
by age, after long residence among the Crows as 
a friend and favorite chief, and having incurred 
the bitter hatred of the Cheyennes and Sioux 
alike, knew full well that Jds scalp (" Big 
Throat's") would be the proudest trophy they 
could bear to their solemn feasts; and there he 
sat, or crouched, as watchful as though old times 
had come again, and he was once more to mingle 
in the light, or renew the ordeal of his many 
hair-breadth escapes and spirited adventures. 
Many stories are told of his past history, and he 
is charged with many of his own manufacture. 
He is said to have seen a diamond in the Rocky 
Mountains, by the light of which he traveled 
thirty miles one stormy night, and to have in- 
formed some inquisitive travelers that Scott's 
Blufis, nearly four hundred feet high, now stand 
where there was a deep valley when he first 
visited that country. When inquired of as to 
these statements, he quietly intimated that there 
was no harm in fooling people who pumped him 
for information and would not even say " thank 
ye.'' Once he was wealthy, and his silver oper- 
10* 



114 AB8ARAKA. 

ations in Colorado might have been very lucra« 
tive; but he was the victim of misplaced confi- 
dence, and was always restless when not on the 
plains. To us, he was invariably straightforward, 
truthful, and reliable. His sagacity, knowledge 
of woodcraft, and knowledge of the Indian was 
wonderful, and his heart was warm and his feel- 
ings tender wherever he confided or made a 
friend. An instance of this will close the sketch 
of one who will soon pass away, the last of the 
first pioneers of the Rocky Mountains. 

He cannot read, but enjoys reading. He was 
charmed by Shakspoare ; but doubted the Bible 
story of Samson's tying foxes by the tails, and 
with firebrands burning the wheat of the Phil- 
istines. At last he sent for a good copy of 
Shakspeare's plays, and would hear them read 
until midnight with unfeigned pleasure. The 
murder of the two princes in the Tower startled 
him to indignation. He desired it to be read a 
second and a third time. Upon positive convic- 
tion that the text was properly read to him, he 
burned the whole set, convinced that " Shak- 
speare must have had a bad heart and been as 
de — h mean as a Sioux, to have written such 
scoundrelism as that." But to return to the 
council. 

linear Major Bridger stood Jack Stead, the in- 
terpreter. Born in England, early a runaway 
sailor boy, afterward a seaman upon the Peacock 



TUE INDIAN ADVOCATE. 115 

when it was wrecked near the moutli of Colum- 
bia River; then traversing the Rocky Mountains 
as one of the first messengers to report the Mor- 
mon preparations to resist the United States, and 
the renewal of Indian hostilities, the same year; 
with hair and eyes black as an Indian's, and a 
face nearly as tawny from hardship and exposure ; 
a good shot, and skilled in woodcraft; with a 
Cheyenne wife; fond of big stories and much 
whisky; but a fair interpreter when mastered 
and held to duty; and watchful as Bridger him- 
self to take care of his scalp, — Jack Stead was 
the first to break the silence and announce that 
Black Horse wanted to talk. 

Adjutant Phisterer, called by the Indians " Ro- 
man, or Crooked Nose," acted as recorder of the 
council, keeping full notes of the conference ; 
and few were the diaries or letters home that did 
not embody the history of our first visit from 
Indians, and repeat some of their expressions of 
purpose or desire. 

Neither did the Indian advocate appear to dis- 
advantage, as the exponent of liis rights and 
wants. Erect and earnest, he cast ofl:' the buf- 
falo robe that had been gathered about his 
shoulders and in his folded arms, and while it 
now hung loosely from his girdle, stepped half- 
way toward the table and began. 

With fire in his eye, and such spirit in his ges- 
ture as if he were striking a blow for his life or 



116 ABSARAKA. 

the life of his nation ; with cadence changeful, 
now rising in tone, so as to sound far and wide 
over the garrison, and again sinking so as to seem 
as if he were communing with his own spirit 
rather than feeling for a response from the mind 
of another, the Cheyenne chief stood there to re- 
present his people, to question the plans of the 
white chief, and solemnly advise him of the issue 
that was forced upon the red man. It was an 
occasion when all idea of the red man as the mere 
wild beast to be slaughtered, quickly vanished in 
a prompt sympathy with his condition, and no 
less inspired an earnest purpose, so far as possible, 
to harmonize the intrusion upon his grand hunt- 
ing domain with his best possible well-being in 
the future. 

Other chiefs folowed "Black Ilorse," in ha- 
rangues of varied length and vigor; and all agreed 
that they preferred to accept protection and be- 
come the friends of the whites. They came to 
represent one hundred and seventy-six lodges, and 
had been hunting on Goose Creek and Tongue 
River, when they met Red Cloud ; but said that 
one hundred and twenty-five of their young men 
were absent with "Bob Tail," having gone to 
the Arkansas on the war-path and hunt. They 
had quarreled with another band of Cheyennes, 
who lived near the Black Hills east of Powder 
River ; and said there was a third band south of 
the Republican hostile to the whites. Two of 



THE INDIANS HAVE MUCH TALK. Ht 

the chiefs had with them Camanche wives whom 
they had married in excursions to the south. 

They gave the history of a portion of our march, 
and stated correctly, what Red Cloud had assured 
them, that half of the white soldiers were left 
back at Crazy Woman's Fork. They said that 
Red Cloud told them, the morning before the 
messenger was sent to the camp, that white sol- 
diers from Laramie would be at Piney Fork be- 
fore the sun was overhead in the heavens ; that 
the white chief sent soldiers from Reno after In- 
dians who stole horses and mules ; but the white 
soldiers did not get them back. 

They also stated that the Sioux were having a 
sun-dance, insisting that the Cheyennes must 
make common cause with them and drive the 
white man back to Powder River ; that some of 
Red Cloud's men had already gone back to inter- 
rupt travel on the road ; that they had left their 
squaws in the village with thirty of their old 
men, and were afraid the Sioux would rob them 
in their absence if they should stay too long in 
the white man's camp ; but that if they could 
have provisions, they would make a strong peace, 
and let a hundred of their young men, whose re- 
turn would be in two days, go with the white sol- 
diers against the Sioux. 

Before the council broke up. Brevet Major 
Haymond arrived with his four companies and 



118 ABSARAKA. 

went into camp northwest of the fort near the 
river crossing. 

The Indians became very restless as the after- 
noon progressed, and at last bade good- by; re- 
ceiving papers indicative of their good behavior, 
and entering into an agreement to leave the line 
of road and go upon or south of the upper plateau 
of the Big Horn Mountains. They afterward 
visited Fort Caspar, behaving well, and no doubt 
observed their obligations as best they could. 

The presents given consisted of some second- 
hand clothing of the officers, twenty pounds of 
tobacco, a dinner of army rations, and enough 
flour, bacon, sugar and coffee to give them a meal 
in their village and convince the absent of their 
kind treatment. They left with apparently cor- 
dial good feeling, and the understanding that 
they were not to approach emigrant trains even 
to beg ; but might go to Laramie, or other mili- 
tary posts when hungry, as long as they remained 
the friends of the whites. 

There is no evidence that any of these chiefs 
have violated their pledges. 



SAD REPORTS. HQ 



CHAPTER XIII. 

MASSACRE OF LOUIS GAZZOUS' PARTY — INDIAN RAID AND 
GREAT LOSS OP MULES — THE CHEYENNES AGAIN — FORTY 

HOSTILE DEMONSTRATIONS OF THE " PEACEABLE TRIBES" 

THE LARAMIE TREATY INCIDENTALLY TESTED — MASSACRE 
OF LIEUTENANT DANIELS — A FIGHTING PARSON. 

At five o'clock a.m., July 17th, the herds of 
Brevet Major Haymond were surprised, the In- 
dians crawling within the picket, and with great 
sagacity starting Wagonmaster Hill's bell mare 
first, so as to secure all in company. Major Hay- 
mond, with one orderly, started in pursuit, as we 
afterward learned, although no information was 
given at the post until two hours after. He left 
orders, we heard, for the mounted men to sad- 
dle and follow. The party thus pursuing in haste 
was ultimately surrounded by several hundred 
Indians, and when a messenger was sent in with 
report of the condition of afiairs, two companies 
of infantry and fifty mounted men, with ammu- 
nition, rations, wagons, and ambulances, were at 
once started to the relief. 

But very soon sad reports came from Peno 
valley, only a few miles over Lodge Trail Ridge. 
The casualties of the command had been two 
men killed and three wounded ; and, more pain- 



120 ABSARAKA. 

ful than al), was the report of the massacre on 
the road of Louis Gazzous and most of his 
party. 

Brevet Major Haymond, finding the Indians so 
numerous and the ground impracticable for the 
use of his men, while the Indians were not only 
perfectly at home, but speciallj^ watchful of strag- 
glers and fully versed in that style of warfare, 
fell back toward the post. On the retreat he 
came up with the wagons of French Pete, which 
had already started for camp. About the plun- 
dered wagons lay the mutilated remains of his 
party, with the exception that his wife, a Sioux 
woman, with her five children, had been able to 
hide in the brush until the arrival of the troops 
furnished an escort to headquarters. 

Six men lay dead and mutilated upon the road. 
Such was the first lesson to the expedition of the 
kind of peace to be expected for the future. 
Henry Arrison, of St. Louis, partner of Gazzous, 
was among the number. The cattle, wagons, and 
goods that the Indians had not broken open, for 
want of time, were brought to the post and taken 
charge of by Mr. John W. Hugus, administra- 
tor, on behalf of the widow, creditors, and 
friends of the deceased. 

The Sioux wife of Gazzous said that the Chey- 
ennes had traded largely and pleasantly with 
Pete, and that the chiefs who had visited the 
post on the IGth were with them until midnight, 



BLACK HORSE'S ADVICE. 121 

smoking and trading ; that during the evening 
some of the Sioux chiefs came up from Tongue 
River valley and asked Black Horse what the 
white man said to them, and whether the white 
chief was going back to Powder River. To this 
Black Horse answered "that the white chief 
would not go back, but his soldiers would go 
on." They then asked "what presents were 
given." Black Horse told them "that they had 
all they wanted to eat, and the white chief 
wished all the Arrapahoes and Sioux, and all 
other Indians of that country, to go to Laramie 
and sign the treaty and get their presents." At 
this the Sioux unstrung their bows, and whipped 
Black Horse and the other Cheyennes over the 
back and face, crying " CooP' which by the In- 
dians is deemed a matter of prowess and a feat 
which secures them credit, as they count their 
" Coos " in a fight almost as proudly as they do 
the scalps of enemies. 

After the Sioux left. Black Horse told French 
Pete that he must go to his village and from 
there to the mountains, for the Sioux meant war, 
but advised him to send a messenger to the white 
chief quick, or the Sioux would kill him. French 
Pete neglected the advice; but was on his re- 
turn in the morning, when the Sioux, who had 
stolen Major Haymond's mules, and had come in 
contact with his men, came across the train and 
destroyed all the men who were with it. 
11 



122 ABSARAKA. 

On the same day Major HaymoncVs four com- 
panies were ordered to change their position and 
encamp just below the fort. 

On the 19th a train with miUtary escort, under 
Captain Burrows, was sent back to Fort Reno 
for provisions. The young men of the Chey- 
ennes also returned from the Arkansas, and 
"Bob Tail" had an interview with the colonel, 
leaving his own robe as a pledge of his friend- 
ship. 

About one o'clock a.m., July 24th, a courier 
from Clear Fork brought a dispatch from Cap- 
tain Burrows that the Sioux were very numerous, 
and additional force was needed at once. Mr. 
Thomas Dillon also wrote that Mr. Kirkendall's 
train had been engaged all the afternoon, and 
he could not move without troops. A com- 
pany of infantry, with a mountain howitzer, was 
soon started, and upon their approach in the 
morning, the Indians, numbering several hun- 
dred, fled, Torrcnce Gallery, of Company G, 
had been killed ; and one of the trains relieved, 
which had been taken back to Fort Reno tempo- 
rarily, contained five officers of the regiment, 
with servants, baggage, Mrs. Lieutenant Wands 
and child, all of whom had been forwarded from 
Fort Laramie, under the prestige of the Laramie 
treaty, with only ten men as escort to headquar- 
ters. "When this train had reached Crazy Wo- 
man's Fork it was attacked by fifty Indians, and 



A FIGHTING PARSON. 123 

Lieutenant Daniels, of Indiana, who was a little 
in advance selecting camping ground, was killed, 
scalped, and mutilated, while one of the Indians 
put on his clothes and danced within view of the 
party. 

Chaplain David "White, Lieutenants Temple- 
ton, Bradley, and Wands, with Mrs. Wands and 
child, survived, and the Henry rifle of Mr. Wands 
was specially efBcacious in warding off and pun- 
ishing the assailants. 

Chaplain White, like the preachers of Crom- 
well, only prayed internally, while putting his 
time physically into the best exercise of self- 
defense. He thinks he did his duty; and the 
officers say that he thought it was just about the 
right thing to kill as many of the varmint as 
possible. 

Lieutenant Kirtland's rescuing party from 
Keno was also very prompt, and Lieutenant 
Daniel's remains were escorted to that post and 
suitably buried. 

The Cheyennes of Black Horse met Kirken- 
dall's train and gave warning of the approach of 
the Sioux, just as they had at the council given 
indications of this same movement. The warn- 
ing was disregarded, but the Sioux did come. 

Thus commenced our first two weeks in our 
new home. A few more incidents will illustrate 
the experience that followed. 

July 22d. At Buffalo Springs, on the Dry 



124 ABSARAKA. 

Fork of Powder River, a citizen train was at- 
tacked, having one man killed and another 
wounded. 

July 22d, Indians appeared at Fort Reno, 
driving ofi' one public mule. 

July 22d. Mr. Nye lost four animals near Fort 
Phil Kearney, and Mr. Axe and Mr. Dixon each 
had two mules stolen by Indians. 

July 23d. A citizen train was attacked at the 
Dry Fork of the Cheyenne, and two men were 
killed. 

July 23d. Louis Cheney's train was attacked ; 
one man was killed, and horses, cattle, and pri- 
vate property were sacrificed. 

July 28th. Indians attempted to drive off the 
public stock at Fort Reno, and failed ; but took 
the cattle of citizen John B. Sloss. Pursuit; 
recovered them. 

July 29th. A citizen train was attacked at 
Brown Springs, four miles east of the East Fork 
of the Cheyenne, and eight men were killed, 
two were wounded, and one of these died of his 
wounds. Their grave is still memorial of the 
confidence with which they left Laramie, assured 
that all was peace. These men, though too few 
in numbers, were well armed, but were deceived 
by a show of friendship ; and one Indian shot a 
white man in the back just after shaking hands 
and receiving a present. 

Meanwhile, the necessity of maintaining Fort 



UOSTILE DEMONSTRATIONS. 125 

Reno as an intermediate post on the route had 
been established. Another company was sent 
to reinforce its garrison. The Upper Yellow- 
stone post was abandoned for want of troops, 
and early in August, Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel 
N. C. Kinney, with Captain Burrows and their 
two companies, were sent to the Big Horn River, 
distant ninety-one miles, to establish that post, 
subsequently known as Fort C. F. Smith. 

The narrative of all hostile demonstrations 
need not be traced. Enough will be given to 
correct false ideas as to the feelings and opera- 
tions of Indians during the year; and the reader 
will not be astonished that ladies, as well as 
gentlemen, perused the President's message of 
December 8th, 1866, which congratulated the 
country that the Indians were at peace, with 
something like inquisitiveness as to whether the 
colonel had reported the true condition to de- 
partment headquarters, and whether department 
headquarters had read his report. 

But to proceed. Grover, the artist, corre- 
spondent of Frank Leslie, was scalped one Sun- 
day morning, while only a few minutes' walk 
from the post. 

August 9th. In one of the frequent attacks 

upon the timber train, four mules were taken 

after the driver had cut them loose ; but a party 

from the fort under Corporal Phillip recaptured 

11* 



126 ABSARAKA. 

the mules, killing one Indian and wounding a 
second. 

August 12th. Indians drove off horses and 
cattle belonging to citizens encamped on the 
river bank near Reno. The cattle were re- 
captured. 

August 14th. Joseph Postlewaite and Stockley 
Williams were killed within four miles of Fort 
Eeno. 

August 17th. Indians appeared in force near 
the same post, and drove oft' seven public horses 
and seventeen mules. Other similar depreda- 
tions occurred in August. 

September 8th, at 6 o'clock a.m. Twenty mules 
were driven from a citizen herd, during a severe 
storm, within a mile of Fort Phil Kearney ; and 
two other demonstrations were made the same 
day. The colonel with one party, and Lieutenant 
Adair with another, were out until after 9 o'clock 
at night in pursuit. 

September 10th. Ten herders were attacked a 
mile south of tlie fort, losing thirty-three horses 
and seventy-eight mules. Pursuit was vigorous, 
but unsuccessful. 

September 13th. At midnight a summons 
came from the hay contractors, Messrs. Crarv 
and Carter, at Goose Creek, for help, as one 
man had been killed, hay had been heaped upon 
five mowing-machines and set on lire, and two 
hundred and nine cattle had been stolen by the 



STAMPEDES AND MASSACRES. 127 

ludians, who had driven a herd of buffalo into 
the valley, and thus taken buffalo and cattle 
together out of reach. 

Lieutenant Adair went at once with reinforce- 
ments, but found the Indians in too large force 
for continuance of the work. 

The same day at 9 o'clock, Indians stampeded 
a public herd, wounding two of the herders. 
Captain Ten Eyck and Lieutenant Wands pur- 
sued until late at night. Private Donovan came 
in also with an arrow in his hip; but, just as he 
was always in an Indian fight, brave as a lion, 
started out ao-ain as soon as it was withdrawn. 

September 14th. Private Gilchrist was killed. 

September 16th. Peter Johnson, riding a few 
rods in advance of his party, which was returning 
from a hay field near Lake Smedt, was suddenly 
cut off by Indians. Search was made that night 
by a party under Quartermaster Brown, but his 
remains were not recovered. 

September 17th. A large force demonstrated 
from the east, and took forty-eight head of cattle ; 
but all were recaptured on pursuit. 

September 20th. Indians attacked a citizen out- 
fit lying in the angle of the two Pineys ; but were 
repulsed by aid from the fort, losing one red man 
killed and another wounded. 

September 23d. Indians attacked and drove 
off twenty-four head of cattle. They were pur- 
sued by Quartermaster Brown, in company with 



128 ABSARAKA. 

twenty-three soldiers and citizens, and after a 
sharp fight at close quarters, the cattle were re- 
captured, and a loss was inflicted upon the Indians 
of thirteen killed and many wounded. 

September 23d. Lieutenant Matson, with an 
escort, bringing wagons from the hay field, was 
surrounded and corraled for some time by a su- 
perior force. He found upon the road the body 
of contractor Grull, who had been to Fort C. F. 
Smith with public stores, and was killed on his 
return with two of his drivers. 

On the 17th, 21st, and 23d, Indians had also 
been active near Fort Reno, driving off horses 
and cattle. Casper II. Walsh was killed; and at 
the Dry Fork of the Cheyenne, citizens W. R. 
Pettis and A. G. Overholt were wounded. 

September 27th. Private Patrick Smith was 
scalped at the Pinery, but crawled a half mile to 
the block-house, and survived twenty-four hours. 

Two of the working party in the woods were 
also cut ofiT from their comrades by nearly one 
hundred Indians, and were scalped before their 
eyes. A party of fifteen dashed at the nearest 
picket but did no harm. 

Captain Bailey's mining party lost two of their 
best men. 

On one occasion a messenger came in hot haste 
from the Pinery, reporting that they were be- 
sieged; that the Indians had fired through the 
loop-holes of the block-house; that the men 



EFFECT OF A CASE SHOT. 129 

were constantly under arms, unwilling as well as 
unable to work, and asking for a force to clear 
the Indians out of the bottom lands underneath, 
where the woods were very dense. The colonel 
went out with a small party and howitzer, shelled 
the woods, restored confidence, and the men re- 
sumed work. A person ignorant of the effect 
of a case shot, which scatters its eighty iron 
bullets quite dangerously, might think it very 
foolish to explode one where no enemy was in 
sight: but we saw those experiments repeated, 
where otherwise quite a skirmishing party w^ould 
have been required, and as the Lidians invariably 
ran away, and sometimes got hurt, the little 
howitzers were soon favorites and no objects of 
ridicule or contempt. 

The foregoing are instances out of many Indian 
visits, but do not give all, even of the first two 
months of our residence in that country. Alarms 
were constant ; attacks upon the trains were fre- 
quent, and this kind of visitation continued dur- 
ing the whole season. The ladies all came to the 
conclusion, no less than the officers affirmed it, 
that the Laramie treaty was " Wau-nee-chee^'" no 

GOOD ! 

iq-OTE. — A buffalo robe, similar to that engraved, was cap- 
tured, showing the details of the fight of September 23d, be- 
tween Captain Brown and Eed Cloud's band. 



130 ABSABAKA. 



CHAPTER XIV. 



CONDUCT OF THE CROW INDIANS — WHAT BRIDGER AND BECK- 
WITH SAY. 



It was quite early after the establishment of 
Fort Philip Kearney that measures were taken 
to hold communication with the Crow Indians, 
to consult with the authorities of Montana, and 
determine the condition of the entire route *to 
Virginia City. Major Bridger was selected for 
the mission, accompanied by Henry Williams, 
assistant guide, who proved himself valuable in 
almost every work he undertook. They made 
the through trip with comparative expedition, 
made complete notes of the journey, and besides 
their official reports, were very courteous in con- 
tributing their information to those who were 
desirous to keep a full record of all that trans- 
pired during our sojourn on the frontier. 

They had first an interview with nearly six 
hundred warriors, not far from Clark's Fork. 
On that occasion "White Mouth," "Black Foot," 
and "Rotten Tail" declared their uniform and 
unanimous voice for peace; but said that in some 
instances the young men desired to join the 
Sioux, and thus come to some accommodation 



CONDUCT OF 'I HE CEOW INDIANS. 131 

as to their title to the lands of which they had 
been robbed by both Sioux and Cheyeunes. 

Hed Cloud had made them a visit and they 
had returned the visit, but would not join him 
against the whites. The "Man afraid of his 
Horses" told them that his young men were 
going on the war-path, and that the Sissetons, 
Bad Faces, Ogillallas from the Missouri, the 
Minnecongous from the Black Hills, the Unk- 
papas, some Cheyennes and Arrapahoes, as well 
as the Gros Ventres of the Prairie, were united 
to drive away the whites, and would have big 
fights at the two new forts in the fall. 

They also represented that "Iron Shell," with 
some of the young men of the Minnecongous 
and Brules, would go with Red Cloud, notwith- 
standing the Laramie treaty; that the Nesperces 
and Flatheads were friendly, but the Pagans and 
Bloods were hostile, while the Blackfeet, Assini- 
boines, and Crees were friendly with both parties 
and would join no league against the whites. 

Besides the visits of Bridger to other bands 
of Crows along the route from Big Horn to the 
Upper Yellowstone, James Beckwith,the famous 
mulatto of the plains, who had also lived among 
the Crows as an adopted chief, and had several 
Crow wives, was employed as an assistant guide, 
and was sent to their villages, where he subse- 
quently sickened and died. 

From these sources it was learned that in the 



132 ABSARAKA. 

fight of September 23cl the Sioux lost thirteen 
killed and had a great many wounded. 

Other parties of Crows came to Fort C. F. 
Smith to hunt and trade in that vicinity, and not 
only showed uniform friendliness toward the 
whites and the new road, but oiFered two hun- 
dred and fifty young warriors to engage in op- 
erations against the Sioux. Major Bridger had 
great confidence in this proposition; but the offi- 
cers had, it would seem, no authority to employ 
so many, as well as no means of arming and 
equipping them when employed. 

All the statements of the Crows were substan- 
tially confirmed by Cheyennes at a subsequent 
visit. They represented "Red Cloud "and "The 
Man afraid of his Horses" to be in Tongue River 
valley, and "Buftalo Tongue," to be on Powder 
River; that the "Big Bellies," the "Bad Arrows," 
"Those that wear a Bone in the !No8e," and 
"Those that put Meat in the Pot" were near the 
Big Horn River, and though friendly to the 
Crows were opposed to the road; that "Bob 
North," a white man with but one thumb, with 
twenty-five lodges and the "Big Medicine Man 
of the Arrapahoes," had also joined the aggres- 
sive party. 

Still later in the season there was renewed and 
cumulative evidence that the Crows were truly 
friendly, but were unwilling to venture very far 
eastward for any purpose, until the Sioux were 



INFLUENCE OF INDIAN STATEMENTS. 133 

out of the way or the white soldiers were suffi- 
ciently numerous to guarantee their safety with- 
out sacrifice of life or property. 

"White Mouth" and "Rotten Tail" told Mr. 
Bridger that they were half a day in riding 
through the hostile villages in Tongue River 
valley, and that fifteen hundred lodges of war 
parties were preparing to attack the white man 
at Fort Philip Kearney and Fort C. F. Smith. 

All these statements were believed, and it is 
known that they had important influence in that 
vigorous prosecution of necessary work which 
followed, and rendered impossible any system of 
aggressive war on the part of the troops of the 
garrison / 



134 ABSABAKA. 



CHAPTER XV. 

VISIT OF INSPECTOR-GENERAL HAZEN — REINFORCEMENTS ON 

THE WAT MOUNTED INFANTRY COMPARED WITH SIOUX 

LIGHT CAVALRY — UNITED STATES MAILS — CORRAL SYSTEM 
TIMBER AND LUMBER SUPPLIED TO ORDER. 

The last days of Aus^ust brouo-ht Brevet Brio;- 
adier-General Hazen on a tour of inspection, and 
his visit was greatly enjoyed by us all. He also 
brought the welcome news that two companies 
of regular cavalry had been ordered up immedi- 
ately from Laramie, and that although he had 
waited a week for them at Fort Reno, they would 
certainly be but a few days behind him. The 
next day it was understood that official orders 
had been received to the same effect — that one 
regiment of infantry had left St. Louis by way of 
reinforcements westward, and that General Cooke 
had acquired the other two battalions of the 18th, 
with control of all operations on the Platte. This 
inspired everybody with good cheer, and the time 
was eagerly anticipated, by ladies no less than 
gentlemen, when adequate means would allow 
some opportunity to punish Indians more thor- 
oughly and thus insure the integrity and security 
of the route. 

On the last day of August General Hazen, ac- 



CARRYING THE MAILS. 135 

companied by Lieutenant Bradley and twenty-six 
picked men of the mounted infantry, with Mr. 
Brannan as guide, started overland for Fort Ben- 
ton and other posts on the Upper Missouri. The 
loss of one-third of the mounted force seemed less 
annoying, as the two companies of cavalry were 
supposed to be not far behind, and yet, in fact, 
they did not come that fall. Half armed portions 
of one company straggled along in November, 
having old Enfield rifles or old-fashion carbines, 
and the first installment of this company was but 
sixteen strong, under a sergeant, with orders to es- 
cort a train to Fort C. F. Smith. All this no one 
could know in advance; and the constant looking 
for somebody to help watch, work, and fight was 
kept up until, as in respect of almost everything 
else relating to the post which was of importance 
to be known to the people at large, or at least the 
authorities at the head of affairs, it was left for 
the massacre of December 21st to arouse the im- 
pression that there were really some untamed 
red men roaming loose on the plains. 

The mounted infantry were the sole depend- 
ence for carrying the mails, as these had been 
ordered to be carried weekly, at the rate of at 
least fifty miles per day; and the horses, which 
by the 10th of October had been reduced to less 
than forty, were poorly adapted for a swift ex- 
press of over two hundred and thirty-five miles 
without a relay, and especially when they were 



136 ABSARAKA. 

almost daily required for active picket and out- 
post duty at the fort. 

This mail was our sole reliance, as it made the 
trip both ways, and no cavalry or other mail 
parties came from Laramie to exchange with it, 
and so divide the labor between the two posts 
until subsequently, when mails were left at the 
ferry. Fort Philip Kearney therefore did not 
receive its mails from the east, but sent east 
when it wanted some news, and thus occupied a 
very prominent and independent position in Ab- 
saraka and the region adjacent thereto. Some- 
times these trips were as long as three weeks, 
because night travel had to be relied upon through 
a portion of the route, and neither wagon-teams 
nor pack mules maintained their ambition as to 
speed and exactness, when they found that their 
natural inability to perform the feat was not re- 
garded as excuse for failure. 

The Indian habit of calling as early as daylight 
for loose stock, required also that the horses, 
when in garrison, should be early saddled, so 
that, at any moment, the girths could be tight- 
ened, the bridles be bitted, and a dash be made 
after such pereistent trespassers. It was a source 
of congratulation, alike to men and to horses, 
that this habit never cost the garrison a life or a 
horse, while in many cases it defeated the plans 
of the Indians and secured the recapture of stolen 
stock. Mounted infantry, however, are a pecu- 



MOUNTED INFANTRY. 137 

liar institution in that country. The long rifle, 
however well cared for, is forever in the way, 
and the soldier is spoiled for a footman and is 
almost useless in the saddle. It became a settled 
opinion, which the ladies shared with others, that 
the Sioux and Cheyenne light cavalry were much 
better adapted to the hills and valleys, the gorges 
and mountain passes, especially in a long race, 
or steeple-chase, than even the mounted men of 
the 18th. Of course, it was difficult for men, 
unused to horseback-riding, to take to it kindly, 
at first; and the manual of arms was less conve- 
nient when yelping Indians were shaking buffalo 
robes and speeding the flight of arrows and bul- 
lets. We had, of course, to keep a mounted 
picket and prompt communication with working 
parties; and there was also some responsibility 
for helping Fort C F. Smith to some communi- 
cation with the outer world. 

Such men as Brannan, with his daring, who 
was scalped through his imprudence on his re- 
turn from the trip with General Hazen ; as Van 
Volzpah, with his experience and quiet coolness, 
who, after a life in Oregon and Washington Ter- 
ritories, and many successful trips to Laramie, 
was butchered at last, with his whole party ; as 
miner Phillips, with his sound sense and solid 
honesty, who carried dispatches on the night of 
December 2l8t, and Captain Bailej", of the miners, 
who, after seventeen years in frontier explorations, 
12* 



138 ABSARAKA. 

retained the manners and habits of a pleasant 
gentleman, full of intrinsic worth and steady 
courage, could do anything with Indians or 
horses on a mail trip, that anybody could do ; but 
in that bracing climate horses would need their 
forage when trips were frequent, and even the 
men were found to be limited to something like 
the ordinary finite range of physical ability and 
endurance. And yet, nearly every ten days, and 
sometimes each week, brought us a mail, omit- 
ting such newspapers as were borrowed some- 
where east, or were diverted to Salt Lake City, 
where there were more readers, as well as the 
leisure of security from the red men of the plains. 
I^ew York papers were often ten weeks old, and 
nearly half the letters, for a portion of the time, 
bore the postal mark of Salt Lake City, addi- 
tional to several others. 

When horses diminished in numbers, and 
mounted escorts could not accompany the trains 
to the Pinery, a new plan was adopted for the 
more prompt formation of the corral. Trains 
went out in two parallel lines with an interven- 
ing space of fifty or one hundred yards, so that, 
when an alarm was given, the front wagons 
turned in to meet each other; those on the flanks 
were trotted up with the mules inside, covered 
by the next wagon in advance; while the rear 
wagons of each line obliqued in to fill the fourth, 
or rear side of the square. It was a singulai 



ATTACKS. ON WOOD TRAINS. 139 

commentary on the recklessness of travelers, 
their ignorance of the feelings of Indians, their 
want of correct advice at Laramie, and the v^^is- 
dom of the Indians themselves, — that, of all the 
outrages committed on trains in 18G6, there was 
never a single persistent attack upon a good cor- 
ral, neither was there loss of life when proper 
rules were regarded. The apparent exception 
near Fort Philip Kearney, when Lieutenant Guin- 
ness was killed, in June, 1807, grew out of the 
great disparity of numbers, in part, and partly to 
the assurance of the Indians, derived from the 
massacre of December 21st, 1866. Brevet Major 
Powell, who resisted the attack of June, 1867, 
also resisted the tantalizing challenge of Indians, 
December 19th, 1866, and literally obeyed his 
orders, thereby saving himself and command 
from that utter destruction which befell others 
two days later. 

For many months nearly all public references 
to attacks about that post, only made mention of 
attacks on wood trains; and the world at large 
seemed to regard it as if a detail had each time 
been sent for daily supply of fuel, instead of 
being employed on systematic labor in building 
a large post and fort. 

The Pinery, which is most accessible, is just 
seven miles from the fort, as indicated on the 
map of Fort Philip Kearney and surroundings. 
At the base of the upper mountain, as well as 



140 ABSARAKA. 

on the island below, block-houses had been built, 
and the men for a long time remained over night 
for early morning work. A train of over ninety 
wagons was employed at one period, and the 
timber would be cut, loaded, and hauled the 
same day. All sizes were accessible, from tim- 
ber that would work out thirty-inch clear boards 
and plank down to the slender pine of the thick- 
ets from two to three inches thick, which made 
a close framework or skeleton for support of a 
clay covering. Innumerable straight trees of 
from four to fifteen inches in diameter were 
found, which cut from thirty to forty feet in 
length, without a knot or branch ; and these lay 
80 closely in a wall as to need no chinking be- 
fore the plaster was applied. 

These timber parties always had their armed 
teamsters, their armed choppers, and armed 
guard. Chopping details varied from sixteen to 
thirty, with a special guard of about the same 
number, making, with teamsters, a resisting 
force of from seventy to one hundred men, and 
sometimes, early in the season, the force of team- 
sters and wagonmasters alone was nearly that 
number. 

Timber was procured much nearer, but with 
more difficulty, in July and August; and the 
place last adopted proved ample for all pur- 
poses. 

This work blended all kinds of labor appro- 



A DELIGHTFUL DINNER. m 

priate for tools that chop, saw, hew, or finish 
wood. Shingles were rived from bolts sawed by 
the men, and many a "shingle bee" was held, at 
night, to expedite work and convince the skep- 
tical that shingles, or anything else, could be 
made or done, when it had to be, and that civili- 
zation was still westward bound. 



CnAPTER XVI. 

FORT PHILIP KEAKNEY AKD SURKOUNDINGS — A PICNIC — 
ASCENT OP THE MOUNTAINS — LAKE SMEDT — FINE SCENERY 
— PLAN OF THE FORT. 

But for the presence of hostile Indians, the 
country about Fort Philip Kearney would be a 
charming field for hunting and picnic purposes. 
Soon after our arrival, the ladies ventured twice 
to the mountains, and the second time descended 
to Pine Island, where choice elk steaks, fur- 
nished by the timber choppers, and suitable ac- 
cessories, supplied a delightful meal, and no 
Indian disturbed the pleasure. Judge J. T. 
Kinney, formerly Chief Justice of Utah, repre- 
senting the business interests of Mr. Botsford, 
the sutler, was chief manager and steward, and 
under his skillful catering a dinner was provided 
that would not have dishonored a city restaurant. 



142 ABSARAKA. 

The bill of fare was not printed; but canned 
lobster, cove oysters, and salmon were a very 
fair first course ; and, associated with the game, 
were jellies, pineapples, tomatoes, sWeet corn, 
peas, pickles, and such creature comforts, while 
puddings, pies, and domestic cake, from dough- 
nuts and gingerbread up to plum cake and jelly 
cake, with coftee, and Madame Cliquot for those 
who wished it, and pipes and cigars for the gen- 
tlemen, enabled everybody to satisfy desire. 

A trip to Lake Smedt, which is but a little 
more than two miles distant, is another locality 
which could be made a pleasant summer resort, 
to say nothing of skates in winter. The western 
end of the lake is accessible by a gentle slope 
after crossing Starling Creek ; and a few hours' 
work and the use of pine timber would make a 
convenient landing for sail boats and duck boats. 
The north shore is ragged and the hills are 
covered with fragments of coal, red lava, and 
melted boulders, which seem as if they had been 
thrown out of some great furnace. The south 
shore is hilly but less rocky. The water is deep 
and intensely alkaline, and there is neither inlet 
nor outlet as the little creek which is crossed 
before reaching the lake passes by the west end 
at a few hundred yards distance, and turns west- 
ward to the Piney Forks, emptying its stream 
below their junction. 

A third ride, which reouires the saddle, is to 



ASCENT OF THE MOUNTAINS. 143 

climb the mountains by an Indian trail just 
below the point where the Little Piney makes 
its exit, and visit Fort Ridge, more than seven 
hundred feet above the fort. This ridge received 
its name from an Indian fort near the summit. 
It is about thirty feet square, of loose stones of 
considerable size, and when visited, the inclosure 
was raised still higher by temporary abattis of 
pine logs. There were indications that a band 
had recently camped near it, having squaws 
with the party, and doubtless this place fur- 
nished one of the camp fires which had repeat- 
edly been observed both by night and day. 
The view from the next higher range is fine be- 
yond description. 

Below the observer, the fort, the Pineys, 
Lake Smedt, and the branches of Peno Creek 
are drawn so near that it is diflicult to realize 
that they are from seven to twelve miles dis- 
tant. Beyond, and northward, the successive 
round-topped red buttes follow each other like 
an exaggerated style of the waves of some old 
cornfield which has been uncultivated for years ; 
and thus they stretch on for nearly eighty miles 
before they are blended with the uneven horizon. 
In the northwest is the beautiful valley of Tongue 
River and its tributaries, with the Panther 
Mountains beyond. Westward the Big Horn 
Mountain range continues its eragged front, past 
Piney summit and Rocky Face Ridge, until lost 



144 ABSARAKA. 

to view. Eastward, the Black Hills, beyond 
Reno, and Pumpkin Buttes, loom up at a dis- 
tance of a hundred miles, and Rock Creek and 
Clear Fork are traced until they disappear in the 
buttes of the north. Southward, Cloud Peak 
rises sublimely, with its hoary head piercing 
the clouds and furnishing an exhaustless reser- 
voir for the hungry streams below. 

The ascent is slow and requires frequent rests. 
Animals as well as men pant under the strain ; 
the breath becomes short and labored, giving no 
little pain with a sense of suffocation, and the 
perspiration drops from mules and horses as if 
they had just been lifted bodily from a complete 
emersion. But, when the topmost summit is at- 
tained, after threading the intricacies of a pine 
orchard half checked by young balsam and hem- 
lock, the cup of coffee, with a sirloin of mountain 
sheep, cooked upon heated stones or spitted be- 
fore the coals, acquire peculiar virtue and relish; 
and the mind never tires in study of the mag- 
nificent panorama disclosed. 

The Big Piney itself is possessed of a variety 
of natural charms. The gorge through which 
the water rushes is nearly four hundred and fifty 
feet in height, and while the river soon buries 
itself in the pines below, so that the sighs of the 
winds through their branches are blended in 
solemn murmurs with the mad dash of cascades 
and the swift rush of the rapids, it often breaks 



FINE SCENERY. 145 

out to the sunlight, and retains all its wildness 
and tumult of sounds, until it passes the fort, 
and, joined by its lesser sister, bears off for the 
Missouri through the intervening channels. 

These are all rides for the saddle, although the 
ambulance can reach all but the mountain sum- 
mit; and, until two narrow escapes, one on Big 
Piney and another beyond Pilot Hill, had taught 
the ladies the risk of exposure, it was no rare 
thing to see Mrs. Wands and others on a gallop 
for recreation and change. 

The road from the fort to the Pinery is itself 
over the gentle southern slope of Sullivant Hills, 
and at the highest point before entering the 
woods, there is a tine view of Tongue River, the 
red buttes, and the lake, only surpassed by that 
of Fort Ridge itself. 

Pilot Hill, only a few hundred yards from the 
fort, has its own iine views, and the traveler from 
Powder River can see, at the distance of eleven 
miles, its picket on the summit, watching for his 
arrival or keeping close scrutiny of the enemies 
of his peace. 

The old road was abandoned the same week 
the site of the fort was selected; and though 
Colonel Sawyer soon after came over the old road 
as in 18G5, all trains subsequently took the short 
cut-oif from the lake to the fort. 

Opposite the fort, a gradual slope, slashed by 
13 



146 ABSARAKA. 

occasional ravines, ends in a narrow table-land 
with another fine view of the fort, Peno valley, 
the mountains and the lake. In every direction 
are natural beauties which minister to the refined 
taste, and furnish, even at that distance from 
civilized life, such choice intercourse with nature, 
that separation from fViends is softened and the 
hours of peace are like the moments of a pleasant 
dream. 

The fort proper is six hundred feet by eight 
hundred, situated upon a natural plateau, so that 
there is a gradual slope from the front and rear, 
falling off nearly sixty feet in a few rods, thus 
affording a natural glacis, and giving to the posi- 
tion a positive strength, independent of other de- 
fenses. A rectangle, two hundred by six hun- 
dred feet, is occupied by warehouses, cavalry 
stables, laundress quarters, and the non-commis- 
sioned staff'. 

About the parade-ground, already referred to, 
are officers' and men's quarters, offices, guard- 
house, sutler's and band building. 

The stockade is made of heavy pine trunks 
eleven feet long, hewn to a touching surface of 
four inches so as to join closely, being pointed 
and loop-holed, and firmly imbedded in the 
ffround for three feet. Block-houses are at two 
diagonal corners, and massive gates of plank with 
small wickets, all having substantial locks, are 
on three fronts, and on the fourth or southern 



FORT PHILIP KEARNEY. 



14Y 




148 ABSARAKA. 

front, back of the officers' quarters, is a small gate 
for sallies, or for officers' use. 

Three framed warehouses, the hospital and 
four company quarters, built in 1866, are eighty- 
four feet long and twenty-four feet wide, with 
ceilings of ten feet. The windows to soldiers' 
quarters, as well as those designed for officers, 
have three sashes each, giving ample light and 
cheerfulness to the whole garrison. Regulation 
bunks, with arm racks, shelves for knapsacks, 
boots, etc , are conveniently arranged, so that a 
company can form for roll-call between the two 
lines. 

A flag-staff, surrounded by an octagonal band 
platform, stand, and seats, occupies, the center of 
the parade, and diverging walks, twelve feet wide, 
pass to each street, the magazine being in the 
center of one of the squares. 

East of, and opening from the fort, extending 
with nearly an equal area, to the little Piney is 
the corral, or quartermaster's yard. This is sur- 
rounded by a rough cottonwood stockade, and 
contains stabling for mules, hay and wood yards, 
hay scales, quarters for teamsters and mechanics, 
the blacksmith, wngonmakers, carpenters, sad- 
dlers, and armorers' shops, and the general appa- 
ratus and conveniences of such a place. 

From this corral, one gate opens towai'd tlic 
saw-mills, one toward the road from Powder 
River, and one to the clear waters of the Little 



THE STOCKADE. 149 

Piney, whicTi here makes a convenient bend per- 
fectly protected by the re-entering angle of the 
stockade just at that point. 

Two steam saw-milis just above the mill gate, 
and but a few rods distant, furnish constant sup- 
plies of posts, plank, studding, rafters, lath and 
boards, and all lumber for every use. 

The stockade of two thousand eight hundred 
feet circuit was completed in October, notwith- 
standing all other work and constant skirmish- 
ing went on, and, with the exception of most of 
the Sabbaths, there was uo cessation of labor, 
whatever the weather, until the holidays of Oc- 
tober 29th and 30th. On the first of JSTovember 
the same diligence was renewed, and each day's 
close was a new testimony to what a few men 
could accomplish under systematized labor and 
the W'ill to work. 



13» 



150 ABSARAKA. 



CHAPTER XVIL 

TWO HOLIDAYS — OCTOBER INSPECTION AND REVIEW — FIRST 
GARRISON FLAG HOISTED IN ABSARAKA — INCIDENTS OF THE 
DAY — INDIAN RESPONSE TO A NATIONAL SALUTE — LOOKING- 
GLASSES IN ABUNDANCE — EVENING LEVEE. 

The last day of October being the stated day 
of Muster-for-pay, it was declared a holiday, as 
the previous day had been one of preparation. 
The completed flag- staff was at last to receive 
its chief glory in flying the first garrison flag 
that ever rose over Absaraka. 

The day was bright and lovely. 

The whole command was in full dress, and 
after the inspection and review of the morning 
upon the plain before the fort, and the proper 
muster, the troops formed three sides of a square 
about the flag-stalf, the fourth side having a plat- 
form for oflicers, ladies, and visitors, and the 
band taking station in the center. 

Probably the programme would not conform 
closely to all conventionalisms of army usage, or 
find precise antecedents in army regulations, but 
it appeared to be designed more particularly to 
bring hard-working day-laborers back to some- 
thing like military dress forms of parade, and 
supply a little recreation to those whose only in- 



TWO HOLIDAYS. 151 

terval of rest was the occasional hours of sleep. 
Shut out from civilized life, the only drawback 
was the refusal of the colonel to let everybody 
give some old-fashioned cheering when the work 
was done. But all went oli" about as well as it 
would elsewhere, and as it suited those whom it 
was designed to gratify, it made no difference to 
mankind at large. 

Judge Kinney read an appropriate poem of 
Miss Carmichael's chaste and spirited collection, 
Chaplain White offered the prayer, and principal 
musician Barnes, who, with William Daily, fash- 
ioned the flag-staffj presented to be read an ori- 
ginal poem of his own, which at least did justice 
to his patriotic spirit. 

The following was the address, and is such a 
brief resum^ of the preceding work, and the re- 
sults attained by the expedition of 1866 in a lit- 
tle more than three months of labor, that no 
apology is made for its repetition, although al- 
ready known to many: 

"Officers and Men, — Three and one-half 
months ago stakes were driven to define the 
now perfected outlines of Fort Philip Kearney. 
Aggressive Indians threatened to exterminate 
the command. Our advent cost us blood. Pri- 
vate Livensberger of Company F was the lirst 
victim, July 17th, 1866 ; Lieutenant Daniels, 
private Callery, of G Company; Gilchrist and 



152 ABSARAKA. 

Johnson, of E Company; Fitzpatrick and Hacket, 
of D Company; Patrick Smith, of H Company; 
and Oberly and Wasser have also, in the order 
named, given their lives to vindicate our pledge 
to never yield one foot of advance, but to gua- 
rantee a safe passage for all who seek a home in 
the lands beyond. 

" Fifteen weeks have passed, varied by many 
skirmishes and both night and day alarms, but 
that pledge holds good. In every w^ork done 
your arms have been at hand. In the pine tracts 
or hay fields, on picket or general guard duty, no 
one has failed to find a constant exposure to some 
hostile shaft, and to feel that a cunning adver- 
sary was watching every chance to harass and 
kill. 

" And yet that pledge holds good. Stockade 
and block-house, embrasure and loop-hole, shell 
and bullet, have warned off danger, so that wo- 
men and children now notice the savage as 
he appears, only to look for fresh occasion for 
you to punish him, and with righteous anger to 
avenge the dead. 

"The Indian dead outnumbers your own four- 
fold, while your acquired experience and better 
cause afi:brd you constant success in every en- 
counter. This is not all. Substantial warehouses, 
containing a year's supply, spacious and enduring 
quarters, and a well-adapted magazine are otlier 
proofs of your diligence and spirit. 



THE ADDRESS. 153 

"The steam whistle and the rattle of the 
mower have followed your steps in this west- 
ward march of empire. You have built a cen- 
tral post that will bear comparison with any for 
security, completeness, and adaptation to the 
ends in view, wherever the other may be lo- 
cated, or however long in erection.* 

" Surrounded by temptations to hunt the 
choicest game, and allured by tales of golden 
treasure just beyond you, you have spared your 
powder for your foes, and have given the labor of 
your hands to your proper work. Passing from 
guard-watching to fatigue-work, and, after one 
night in bed, often disturbed, returning to your 
post as sentry ; attempting with success all trades 
and callings, and handling the broad-axe and ham- 
mer, the saw and the chisel, with the same suc- 
cess as that with which you have sped the bullet, 
your work has proven how well deserved was the 
confidence I reposed in all of you; and that same 
old pledge still holds good. 

" Coincident with your march to this point 
was the occupation of Fort Reno; first by Com- 

* Brevet Brigadier General W. B. Hazen, upon his tour of 
inspection, pronounced this stockade to be the best he had 
ever seen, excepting only one in British America, built by the 
Hudson Bay Company, with great labor and expense. The 
previous description of Fort Philip Kearney is in substance 
derived from the Artny and Navy Journal and Ne.w York 
Times. 



154 ABSARAKA. 

pany B, afterward reinforced h^ Company F 
of this battalion, and the advance of Companies 
D and G to Fort C. F. Smith, nearly one hun- 
dred miles farther west. All these, like your- 
selves, having a share in the labor, the exposure, 
and the conflicts that throughout the v^hole 
length of the line attended its occupation, have 
sustained the past good record of the 18th In- 
fantry, and thus also have vindicated your 
pledge. 

"And now, this day, laying aside the worn 
and tattered garments, which have done their 
part during weeks of toil and struggle, the vete- 
ran battalion of the 18th Infantry, from which 
perhaps I shall soon be parted in the changes of 
army life and organization, puts on its fresh full- 
dress attire for muster and review. 

" The crowning office, without which you 
would regard your work as scarcely begun, is 
now to be performed, and to its fulfillment I as- 
sign soldiers; neither discharging the duty my- 
self, nor delegating it to some brother officer; 
but some veteran soldiers of good desert shall 
share with a sergeant from each of their com- 
panies, and the worthy man whose work rises 
high above us, the honor of raising our new and 
beautiful garrison flag to the top of the hand- 
somest flag-stafi:* in America. 

"It is the first full garrison flag that has 
floated between the Platte and Montana; and 



THE ADDRESS. 155 

this beautiful pole, perfect in detail, as if wrought 
and finished in the navy yards of New York, Phil- 
adelphia, or Boston, will be to Sergeant Barnes, 
whose appropriate and well-intended verses will 
be read to you, a long remembered trophy of his 
patriotism and skill; a new impulse to your own 
future exertions; a new cause for pride as its 
stripes and stars are daily unfolded; a new source 
of courage to each traveler westward advancing; 
and a new terror to foes who dare to assail you. 

" With music and the roar of cannon we will 
greet its un foldings. 

"This day shall be a holiday, and a fresh 
starting-point for future endeavor. 

"And yet, all is not said that I wish to say ! 
While we exalt the national standard, and re- 
joice in its glory and its power, let us not forget 
the true source of that glory and power. 

"For our unexampled health and continued 
success; for that land of the free and home of 
the brave; for our institutions and their fruits, 
we owe all to the Great Ruler who made and 
has preserved us. 

"Let me, then, ask all, with uncovered heads 
and grateful hearts, to pause in our act of conse- 
cration while the chaplain shall invoke God's 
own blessing upon that act ; so that while this 
banner rises heavenward, and so shall rise with 
each recurring sun, all hearts shall rise to the 
throne of the Infinite, and for this day, its duties 



156 ABSARAKA. 

and its pleasures, we shall become better men 
and better soldiers of the great Republic." 

At the close of the prayer, the flag slowly rose 
tu masthead, while national airs, the booming of 
cannon, and the sharp ring of 'presented arms 
paid it such tokens of respect as the occasion 
enjoined. 

The afternoon was pleasant, and such recrea- 
tion was indulged in as the men found agreea- 
ble. About three o'clock, Indians came out of 
the creek, and around the bend of Sullivant 
Hills, so quickly as to almost pass the west gate 
before they were discovered. They evidently 
hoped, by the suddenness of their movement, to 
cut ofl^" a few private horses that were grazing 
just south of the fort, but were disappointed. 
Others appeared upon the hills, and flashing mir- 
rors were constantly passing signals for nearly 
an hour. It would seem as if the salute had at- 
tracted their attention, and they had supposed 
that other Indians were near the fort, or the 
white men had some other exhibition for their 
gratification and surprise. They had at least the 
pleasure of seeing the stars and stripes, and thus 
getting new hints as to the proposed length of 
our visit. 

In the evening all the officers, in full dress, 
and the ladies of the garrison, attended the 
muster evening levee at the colonel's, where 



A BAY OF INCIDENTS. 157 

music, social dancing, and such an entertain- 
ment as was practicable, closed the day, and 
brought everybody up very closely to the grade 
of similar reunions in the States. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

A r>AT OF INCIDENTS — HOSTILE SIOUX AND FRIENDLY CHEY- 

ENNES — NARROW ESCAPE OF THE LATTER OUR PICKET 

MIMICKED — MORE MASSACRES — CROQUET INTRODUCED INTO 
ABSARAKA. 

One September morning was peculiarly bright 
and clear. A full moon had fairly invited the 
Indian deities to their best endeavor, but as a 
slight fall of snow half covered the earth all ex- 
pectations of seeing red men gradually vanished 
from our minds. The timber train went as usual 
to the Pinery. A water party was at the larger 
creek before the fort. Details were at work on 
the ditch. Others were hewing, pointing, cut- 
ting loop-holes, or placing the completed trunks 
in the trenches. The saw-mills were busy, and 
men who had just come off guard cheerfully lent 
their energies to work upon their company bar- 
racks. The touch of snow seemed to hurry 
everybody. The band were just marching from 
the guard parade when an alarm was given. 
14 



158 ABSARAKA. 

We could all see, and, after the children were 
looked up or " accounted for," did our share of 
watching. 

A party of seven Indians dashed out of the 
thick Cottonwood at the confluence of the two 
Pineys and made boldly for the picket on Pilot 
Hill. It seemed that almost instantly the relief 
of the mounted picket, always saddled and ready, 
were out of the east gate upon a run, and yet it 
was plain that no riders or horses would be in 
time. The despised howitzers were brought into 
requisition, and a case shot was sent as a swifter 
messenger, with its relief of eighty bullets, and, 
as it hurtled through the air, the savages slack- 
ened speed a little to watch its advent. They 
found " the gun that shoots twice" too much for 
their dodging, and as its shell exploded over 
their heads, scattering its compliments and the 
earth in all directions, they turned their course 
and made for the brush as quickly as they had 
appeared. A second similar messenger dropped 
one Indian from the saddle, and all took to 
cover. 

Directly opposite the fort, and only about seven 
hundred yards from the front gate, across the 
Piney, where Captain Bailey had encamped his 
party of miners, nearly fifty Indians made a 
dash for his horses ; but the miners were quick 
as their foe, and were after them with revolvers 
and rifles; while again, "the gun that shoots 



A DAY OF INCIDENTS. 159 

twice" achieved a success. One Indian pony 
was shot by a miner, but, to our great disgust, 
his rider coolly leaped up behind another Indian 
and galloped off beyond the reach of harm. 

A case shot and shell turned aside another 
party demonstrating from the west ; but, simul- 
taneously with the operations of these parties, a 
still larger force was spread out on the summit 
and slopes of Lodge Trail Ridge, just as if they 
had in view an attack upon the timber train 
while the other parties should skirmish and draw 
the attention of the garrison. A detachment 
was at once sent toward the woods, but the flash- 
ing looking-glasses all along the hills passed 
the quick signal that their plans had been foiled, 
and very soon all Indians had disappeared. 

A messenger brought in word that Patrick 
Smith, belonging to the permanent block-house 
party in the woods, had dragged himself nearly 
a half mile to his camp, badly wounded with 
arrows, and scalped. lie had managed to break 
off the shafts, so as not to be impeded in crawl- 
ing through the thickets. Dr. Reid, Acting As- 
sistant Surgeon, at once went to his relief; but 
he died within twenty-four hours. 

While the working party were felling trees, a 
party of Indians broke through the woods and 
killed two of the detail who were a little sepa- 
rated from their comrades. 

About two o'clock in the afternoon the sud- 



160 ABSARAKA. 

den, repeated shriek of the steam-whistle at the 
farther mill, and the equally hasty signal of the 
pickets, gave the alarm that Indians were again 
close by. We could all see fifteen Indians be- 
tween the fort and the mountain, galloping from 
the west directly for Pilot Hil], with the plain 
purpose of capturing and scalping the picket 
under the very eyes of the garrison. Before 
they had half ascended the hill, Captain Brown 
and Lieutenant Adair, with a party, were in hot 
pursuit. Private Rover (who is of good Chicago 
family, and enlisted under the false name of 
Rover) was in charge of the picket. lie had 
been signally brave in several tight places before. 
On this occasion he dismounted his three men, 
turned the horses loose toward the fort with a 
good urging, and slowly fell off the northern 
slope, with arms at a "ready," to join the sup- 
porting party. The horses came down the steep 
grade toward the fort on a run, passing through 
the Indians, who dare not stop them and could 
only give them a few arrows as they passed. 
The chief warrior reached the summit, and for 
an instant turned his pony, to imitate the usual 
signal of riding in a circle until flags were used; 
but the pressure of Captain Brown's party soon 
put the Indians and their ponies to their mettle. 
It was nearly night when the party returned, 
with wearied horses, to tell the tale of their ad- 
ventures. 



FRIENDLY CHEYENNES. 161 

They brouglit with them a band of eight 
Cheyenne Indians and one squaw, whose broken- 
down ponies and miserable outfit showed that 
they were neither on the war-path nor very pros- 
perous. It seems that Captain Brown, while 
pursuing the Sioux, saw them suddenly stop and 
have a short parley with a party coming from' 
the east. 

As the two separated, the latter came forward 
holding up a paper and showing themselves to 
be "Little Moon," "The Rabbit that Jumps," 
and " The Wolf that Lies Down," with a few 
others, on their way to the fort for provisions, 
and permission to go to Tongue River valley to 
hunt. 

These chiefs were at the council in July, and 
said that Black Horse (who then was ill) was 
sick and in their camp at Rock Creek, and that 
old "White Head," the oldest living Cheyenne 
chief, was with them also : that they had been 
in the mountains as directed, and had crossed as 
far as Fort Caspar, where Brevet Major Morris 
had treated them well, and given them a letter 
to the colonel. 

These Indians were permitted to camp on an 
island in Little Piney, under the notice of the 
saw-mill guard, and by dusk were cooking their 
bacon and coiFee, which had been presented by 
Colonel Carrington. 

14* 



162 ABSARAKA. 

Meu of the timber train came in, and told tlie 
soldiers that some of this very party were with 
those who had killed Oberly and Wasser. This 
rumor spread through the garrison. Added to 
the fact that many officers and citizens had doubts 
whether some of the band of "Black Horse" 
were not among our active enemies, this devel- 
oped a spirit of vengeance that soon made itself 
demonstrative. 

It seemed too bad, when no man could go out 
of the stockade unarmed, and any negligence 
insured the most horrible death and torture, that 
any red man should be sheltered and fed by the 
garrison, its commander, or Colonel Carrington, 
the district commander. 

About 9 o'clock Chaplain White called and 
said that the men talked about killing the Chey- 
ennes ; and soon after a soldier opened the door 
and said that "the men were killing the Indians." 
The colonel started at once, with revolver in hand, 
and three reports, soon after heard, showed that 
some issue had been made. As a matter of fact, 
nearly ninety men had quietly armed, and in the 
darkness of the night formed themselves oppo- 
site the Indians, cocked their pieces, all ready to 
fire, when a guard arrived and they were ordered 
back to post. Anxious not to be recognized 
when the guard arrived and they were ordered 
back, they disobeyed Captain Ten Eyck and 
rushed for the east gate ; but the colonel's shots, 



CROQUET INTRODUCED INTO ABSARAEA. 163 

after hesitation to obey his order to halt, stopped 
the party. 

So far as the light could determine, they were 
found to be some of the best men of the garrison. 
They quickly realized the disgrace that would 
have fallen upon the post and regiment had they 
perpetrated the massacre, and for many reasons 
were restored to their barracks with only admo- 
nition and caution as to future conduct. 

In fact, the next day these same Indians had a 
conference, and in the judgment of everybody 
vindicated their good faith by such information 
of their own movements and those of the Sioux, 
as fully comported with advices from other 
sources. 

Old "White Head" also came, with a few 
braves, and had a talk with some of the officers ; 
but the band, after the risk of the night before, 
and having been instructed to keep off the road 
(as soldiers could no longer discriminate when 
they met Indians on the road, or about the work- 
ing parties), left us and returned no more. 

Other days were as full of changing adven- 
tures as this. Few were without their share of 
less painful incidents. A game of croquet was 
planned, and while the ladies could neither ride 
nor walk beyond the gates, some amusement 
was attempted between Indian alarms; the even- 
ing found its recreation in the authors' game, a 
quiet quadrille, good music, conversation, and 



164 ABSARAKA. 

other varieties, besides the needle and cook- 
book. 

It may be acided, before this last reference to 
the Cheyennes, that when they were passed by 
the Sioux whom Captain Brown chased from 
Pilot Hill, the Sioux contemptuously struck 
them and cried "Coo!" as they did in July, 
when unable to induce the same party to en- 
gage in war against the whites and the occu- 
pation of the road. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

NIGHT SCENES — CELESTIAL AND TERRESTRIAL VISITORS — 
AURORA — LUNAR RAINBOW — METEORITES — INDIANS ALL 
IN THEIR WAR-PAINT. 

The nights in Absaraka were peculiarly beau- 
tiful when cloudless. The rarity of the atmos- 
phere gave full play to the star-beams, and it 
seemed as if there were twice as many as in any 
firmament elsewhere. 

Their first appearance was often mistaken for 
Indian signal tires, as they rose above the horizon, 
like the sun or moon, having orbs as marked and 
light as brilliant as when they attained the zenith. 
In the glory of the full moon the snow-clad 
mountains shcne as silver ; while the deep roar 



NIGHT SCENES. 165 

of the cascades of Big Piney Fork was hardly 
less grateful to the wakeful soul than its lullaby 
was soothing to the weary. 

From sunset until morning, this melody in- 
creased in power, as if making most of its time 
when man was not too busy to notice or enjoy, or 
as if seeking to comfort and quiet him after his 
day of toil. Each mid-day's thaw upon the mount- 
ains in summer would reach the great gates of 
exit just at that grateful hour when the undis- 
turbed slumber is sweetest and soundest, and all 
natural harmonies intensity the blessing of morn- 
ing sleep. 

Kow and then the aurora borealis put forth 
its pyrotechnic energies in a profuse variety of 
merry dances, vaulting streamers, and gorgeous 
coronas; and then, again, the lunar rainbow, 
with its strangely unreal tints and novelties, 
would banish sleep and bring us all to a patient 
attention to its claims, and thorough admiration 
of its wonderful characteristics. 

August and November contributed their aero- 
lites and proper share of meteors, and the blazing 
sky-path of these eccentric visitors shone fresh 
and clear after the celestial traveler had exploded 
itself, or had been otherwise disposed of under 
ihe laws of its being or the programme of the 
meteorologist and astronomer. Other nights 
were such as vEneas knew when the gods were 
angry, or Odin permitted when the storm-king 



166 ABSAEAKA. 

was riding in state or in vengeance. Then, every 
mountain gorge had its own blast, and every 
gulch, ravine, and valley had its fitful and unruly 
current. Tent-flies took the proportions and 
direction of inflated balloons, and the snapping 
and flapping was suggestive of sky for the roof- 
ing and all out-doors for the inclosure of the 
habitation we dwelt in. 

Such winds do justice to the theory and mis- 
sion of winds. They blow as winds can only 
blow when in real earnest: and it is inflexibly 
certain that the classical ^olus of early times 
who used to cave and lock up the winds he was 
familiar with, never gained jurisdiction over the 
winds of Absaraka ; or the whole history of his 
career and successes is simply a myth, or poetic 
fiction of by-gone days. In early school hours, 

when Madame M s thought Latin was a 

special accomplishment as a basis of good Eng- 
lish, we received the history and adventures of 
^olus with as much faith as anybody did, and 
if compelled, at last, to question any alleged cir- 
cumstances connected with his career, it is a 
matter of reluctant conviction, and not of captious 
skepticism as to the history of the past. 

Other night scenes than those portrayed by 
Nature were frequently contributed by the native 
inhabitants of the land. 

WTiile the garrison were in tents few ladies 
slept soundly ; and officers and men alike threw 



FALSE ALARMS. 167 

themselves down for repose as if expecting each 
moment a summons to duty. Beyond the general 
guard lines, the pickets were thrown out in 
several directions to watch for the approach of 
Indians ; and as each relief went out it changed 
its station, so that enemies who knew the former 
position of the detail could not know its place 
two hours afterward. Scarcely had the post been 
located, when these night visitations became fre- 
quent. 

On one occasion brisk firing was heard on all 
sides, and the entire garrison was under arms, 
while Lieutenant Adair's whole company was sent 
out to support the pickets and ward off attack. 
]!^umerous fancies often blended with the real 
facts, and false alarms alternated with the genu- 
ine. Thus, wonderful reports would come in of 
the flight of arrows that innocently whizzed past 
the men on duty ; and yet the closest scrutiny by 
lantern or morning light would fail to discover 
the projectiles themselves. Sometimes a mule, 
straying from corral or parting his halter, became 
the victim of that constant vigilance which was 
the price of our lives and liberty; or sneaking 
wolves would be mistaken for sneaking Indians, 
whose habit of borrowing wolf-skins and wolf- 
cries to deceive us compelled instant attention 
to whatever had show of life. At other times 
crawling Indians would actually draw near 
enough to attempt a shot at the tents or sentries; 



168 ABSARAKA. 

and at all times, dawn of day was the only sure 
indication that an enemy was not close at hand. 
One sign, however, became a fair one. When 
wolves were loudest and nearest, the Indians 
seldom were near ; and the old trappers claimed 
to distinguish between the genuine w^olf-howl 
and the Indian imitation by the fact that the 
former produced no echo. Either the natural or 
the imitated was ugly enough, and sufficiently 
abundant for that style of music. 

With completion of the stockade the guard 
was reduced, and some sense of security pre- 
vailed. Until then, it is certain that any con- 
siderable body of Indians, with a proper leader, 
could have dashed through the camp and per- 
formed substantial mischief. But while the 
stockade kept Indians out, it did not keep them 
away. Still they ventured their shots at the 
sentries, fired arrows into the beef cattle close 
outside, and tried all possible measures to de- 
coy and capture any who were imprudent and 
careless. 

About nine o'clock one evening, a volley near 
the front gate aroused the garrison. Close to 
the stockade, and just at the foot of the natural 
slope which surrounds it, a small corral of wagons 
belonging to the sutler inclosed a group of 
teamsters engaged at cards. The first indica- 
tion of the presence of Indians was a volley fired 
under the wagon beds, which wounded three, 



A SKIRMISH. 169 

and one of them fatally. A detail from the 
guard was soon on the spot, and the low ground 
was scouted as far as the creek; but the night 
being dark, no Indians were found. 

Another evening, just after taps, an alarm was 
given by the sutler that his stock, which had 
been left on herd half a mile south of the fort, on 
the Little Piney, was attacked; and besides his 
own men. Captain Brown, with forty infantry, 
moved out as skirmishers from that face of the 
fort toward the creek. Almost immediately a 
bright fire sprang up on the spur of SuUivant 
Hills, nearest the post on the west, around which 
the figures of Indians could be distinctly seen 
moving. The picket at the hay-ricks east of 
the fort, on Little Piney, fired two shots at 
horsemen on the creek, and there were other 
indications that several hostile parties were prey- 
ing about us. The night was very dark, and ob- 
jects could be seen but a short distance. 

The bright fire, made up of pine flambeaus 
or torches, alone furnished any show of a fair 
target, and received complimentary attention. 

A careful range was given to the field how- 
itzer, loaded with a twelve-pound spherical case 
shot, and three twelve-pound mountain howitzers 
were also loaded and trained in three other di- 
rections, where there was any probability of 
stirring up the skulkers. All were discharged 
at one word, and the first shell exploded directly 
15 



no ABSARAKA. 

over the fire, scattering its bullets and the In- 
dians as well, while the lire was instantly ex- 
tinguished and the night passed without further 
interruption. The stock were brought iu safely, 
with the report that the Indians abandoned their 
game as soon as the party on the hills was scat- 
tered. It evidently was a novel surprise, that at 
night, and at the distance of several hundred 
yards, the white soldiers could reach them with 
such plentiful volleys as a case shot distributes. 

The duties of the officer of the day at night 
were always exacting and full of incident ; and 
indeed, while every day brought its probabilities 
of some Indian adventures near the fort or at 
the Pinery, every night had its special dangers, 
which unanticipated might involve great loss, if 
not the sacrifice of the post, its garrison, and 
stores. 

Repeated attempts were made to approach the 
large hay-ricks for the purpose of setting them 
on fire ; and while as a general rule large parties 
only appeared at the full of the moon, the forays 
of stealing and scalping bands were constantly 
harassing and probable. 

Such demonstrations were seldom early in 
the evening. Just at daybreak, when sleep is 
soundest, and the faintest glimmer of light dis- 
closes unprotected stock or exposed positions, 
was the favorite hour with the sharp red man. 

Two days after Captain Fetterman arrived. 



CATTLE DRIVEN OFF. 171 

impressed with the opinion, to which he had 
often given language, that "a company of regu- 
lars could whip a thousand, and a regiment could 
whip the whole array of hostile tribes," he was 
permitted to make the experiment of lying in 
the Cottonwood thickets of Big Piney from two 
o'clock until ten o'clock in the morning, using 
hobbled mules for live bait to decoy the abo- 
rigines. 

A beautiful Sunday morning dawned, and no 
Indians were seen ; and so close was the covert 
that the glass did not reveal the secreted party. 
About nine o'clock Mrs. Wheatley rode in front 
of the fort with Mr. Reid, passing it nearly a 
half mile, where her husband's cattle were feed- 
ing, and at least a mile from the expected skir- 
mish. The team soon came back upon the run, 
some Indians having dashed forth, driven off 
the cattle, and not capturing the wagon and pas- 
sengers because of a presented rifle, or the as- 
surance that the stock was theirs at all events, 
while a moment's delay would expose them to 
quick pursuit from the fort. The Indians may 
or may not have known the plan for their sur- 
prise; but their sagacity and suspicion, their 
keen sight, and knowledge of woodcraft are 
seldom at loss; and while they were often foiled 
and disappointed, or repulsed with loss, they 
were always innocent of being surprised, and 
shrewdly made their own advances so covered 



172 ABSARAKA. 

that tliey were near the desired object before 
their presence was known. 

So it was that nights in Absaraka, so cool 
and suggestive of sweetest sleep, were associated 
with wakefulness and danger; and at least one 
officer, whose responsibilities were as large as 
any, slept for weeks in succession without re- 
moval of garments, and nightly made his rounds 
to secure personal knowledge of the deportment 
of the guard and the condition of the post. 

Habit, however, soon accustomed those who 
were not immediately on duty to trust the vigi- 
lance of the guard, and to sleep by snatches that 
grateful sleep which elsewhere never could be 
beat. 



DOMESTIC LIFE. I'JS 



CHAPTER XX. 



DOMESTIC, SOCIAL, AND RELIGIOUS LIFE, WITU THE EPISODES 
THEREIN OCCURRING. 



Woman had a choice field in Absaraka for the 
exercise of many industrial pursuits, and fortu- 
nate were those who in earlier days had been 
advised that other rooms than the parlor have 
their uses, and other fingering than that of the 
piano must be employed in roasting and boiling, 
in frying and broiling, in baking and stewing. 
It was found that yeast was to be made before 
the bread could be extra, that the hands were to 
be servants when no other servants could be 
had; and it was discovered by some that the 
dish-cloth and wash-cloth, the broom and the 
duster were susceptible of as graceful manipula- 
tion as prinking irons, or the strings of lute and 
guitar. In fact, every morning brought its 
round of ante-breakfast labor, with that restor- 
mg process by which dishes once used are 
brought back to proper condition for future 
ises. Female servants were scarce, independ- 
ent, and disputant. The few taken with families 
nad learned that their market value for washing 
15* 



174 ABSARAKA. 

was above everything reasonable in a bousebold, 
and that a fortune was soon to be realized by 
selling villainous pies to soldiers at half a dollar 
or more for a pie. 

Ladies found themselves obliged to turn mil- 
liners and dressmakers; and we know experi- 
mentally that our experience in fabricating boys' 
clothes alone was worth a good apprenticeship, 
if it should ever become necessary to rush to a 
trade for support. 

Frank Leslie's and Madame Demerest's mag- 
azine became each a desideratum, and linsc}^- 
woolsey, delaines, and calico nowhere else under- 
went such endowment with fashionable shapes 
as in Absaraka. Darning and stitching, hem- 
ming and hemstitching, cutting and basting were 
as inevitable as the need of clothes to wear. 
The triplet of "I never could, I never would, 
and I never will," became almost obsolete; and 
in their place was these other impulses, "I 
wouldn't, but I must and I will," or " I could, 
I can, and I doF' Unhappy were any who de- 
spised to begin, and, in the penalty of charcoal 
beefsteak, hot water soups, and dyspeptic bis- 
cuit, were driven to despair or disgust. 

But any life on the plains is a good school, 
and its practical suggestions take all the starch 
and false pride as to work completely out of the 
unfortunate human creature who expects the 
spoon to be carried to the mouth by attendants, 



DOMESTIC LIFE. 175 

and a metropolitan table to be spread by the 
hands of a striker. 

Primitive ways are to be learned; but the tent 
becomes neat and genteel, and the taste of its 
arrangement and adornment gives capital hints 
to the mind of the beauty of patience, and es- 
pecially confirms the sacred maxim, that content 
with godliness is great gain. 

The snapping of a tent-pole at midnight under 
three feet of snow; the blaze of the canvas, as 
the ambitious fire commissions the red-hot pipe 
to unroof your earthly tabernacle, at no small 
risk to bedding and trunks; the pretty little 
drifts that gracefully slip through the closely 
drawn entrance and sprinkle your bed, your 
furniture, and your wardrobe, all aflTord change 
and excitement, and not unseldom bring oc- 
casion to begin housekeeping anew. The frozen- 
up kettles, pots, and buckets demand recogni- 
tion; while the milk, the cream, and the butter 
are incentives to new branches of industry and 
skill. 

So when houses are used, one house will diflfer 
from another house in glory. The adobe, with 
its unplastered surface, and the dropping of dirt 
from the earth-covered roof, is one variety ; and 
the log-cabin is another variety ; either of which 
involves much ingenuity, not to say genius, as 
the mind struggles to give them neatness and 
comfort. Yet either of these soon becomes 



176 ABSARAKA. 

home; and its protection from summer's heat 
and winter's cold is often more grateful and com- 
plete than more pretending edilices of wood or 
brick. It is indeed not always easy to adapt a 
carpet to dirt floors, or the changing sizes of 
army habitations ; nor is it pleasant to break up 
and begin housekeeping several times a year. 
Always there is something you cannot carry with 
you, something which must be sold or given 
away. Always some favorite chair is broken and 
crockery mysteriously disappears, requiring new 
outlay at prices beyond reason, and trying the 
patience and temper by sound and certain tests. 
Custom familiarizes the different styles, shapes, 
and colors of plates and dishes, as they are re- 
plenished at different times and places; but 
while the tin-cup and plate are splendid on the 
march, they do not come up to the ideal of 
comeliness and elegance in preparation for a re- 
ception or dinner-party given to strangers. 

When, after a successful trip of six hundred 
miles, our two cows were driven away one Sun- 
day afternoon by some very mean Indians, there 
ensued another of those episodes which distract 
the mind and mar all plans as to butter and 
cream for cake and for coffee. The wolves took 
our nice turkey hen just as she was ready to 
give us a brood of little turkeys; while half of 
our young chickens in that bracing climate gaped 
themselves to death. Yet, with all these sacri- 



DOMESTIC LIFE. 177 

fices and losses from repeated change, there were 
real cosey times in tents, houses, or in cabins. 
The good nature and good sense of Uncle 
Samuel had furnished canned provisions, greatly 
to our personal comfort and pecuniary conveni- 
ence ; but fresh vegetables were most precious 
and rare. A few potatoes from Bozemau City, 
sent with the regards of Brevet Lieutenant-Colo- 
nel Kinney, were a great treat; and Major Alm- 
stedt, paymaster, was good enough to sj^are a 
half cabbage and eleven onions, through one of 
his trips, to astonish the palate, and minister to 
a craving for something novel from the United 
States. Ingenuity was tasked to invent new 
cookery for cove oysters and other savory pre- 
served edibles; and wild plums, gooseberries, 
currants, grapes, and cherries furnished a pre- 
serve basis quite palatable and natural. 

Wild meats would have been abundant ; but 
the stringent Indian game laws of that country 
treated all hunting by the white man as poach- 
ing, and the preserves were skillfully guarded, to 
cut oft' so far as possible every impulse to tres- 
pass. 

Evenings had their readings, their games, and 
quiet quadrilles. Music was a never-failing re- 
lief for body and mind ; and the interchange of 
patterns, books, and receipts kept up material for 
new industry and new themes for deliberation or 
chit-chat. Sickness, though rare, brought its 



nS ABSARAKA. 

sympathies, and its little intercbange of good 
things and delicacies ; and with the occasional 
pressure of unsatisfied longings there was devel- 
oped a peculiarly apt illustration of the idea that 
people really don't want much of anything, and 
the Scripture was confirmed that "a man's life 
consisteth not in the abundance of what a man 
possesseth." 

Change and frequent parting brought those 
peculiar separations that nowhere else are so 
tender as in army life on the frontier. Cajjtain 
Haymond, Lieutenants Phisterer and D'Isay left 
us for recruiting service only two weeks after 
we reached our destination ; and subsequently, 
Lieutenant Adair and Lieutenant Bisbee, wife 
and child. Others came, and quite a coterie 
shared in the round of evening sociables, which 
relieved the tension of continual excitement, and 
brought into being some features similar in kind 
to those of by-gone times at home. 

Nor was the Sabbath neglected. Each new 
building, that was available in turn, became our 
sanctuary, as there was not time to build exclu- 
sively for chapel purposes. The sutler's store, 
the commissary building, company headquarters, 
and the band pavilion of evergreens successively 
shared the honor. The string band accompanied 
the voices, and, far away from the church-going 
bell and the heaven-directing spires, the praise of 
God was sung and Divine help implored. Few 



SOCIAL LIFE. 179 

are the sanctuaries in civilized states where the 
'■^ Magnificat,^' '■'■ Gloria in l^xcelsis," ^^ There is a 
light in the windoio," '■'■Old Hundred,'" and '■'■Corona- 
tion'' were supported by a better orchestra or sung 
with more spirit. 

The garrison itself had its own occasional 
social gatherings ; and such was the general 
sobriety, the patient obedience and thorough ab- 
sorption of the men in the plans of their com- 
mander, that drunkenness was rare and profanity 
less than usual. The stringent orders against 
verbal or personal abuse, the public reprimand 
administered on one occasion, and the governing 
principle that while obedience must be cheerful 
and immediate, the rights of the soldier as a 
man must be regarded, inspired the men with 
confidence and new ambition to fulfill their full 
measure of duty. 



180 ABSARAKA. 



CHAPTER XXL 

INDIAN WARFARE — THINGS A WOMAN CAN LEARN WHEN SHK 
HAS SEEN THEM TRIED. 

When even a woman shares the contingencies 
of entering a new country with troops, she must 
learn something besides the lessons of house- 
wifery, endurance, and patience. 

When days, weeks, and months pass with con- 
stantly recurring opportunities of seeing Indians 
in small and in large parties dashing at pickets, 
driving in wood parties, harassing water details, 
and, with dancing and yelling, challenging the 
garrison to pursuit; when, now and then, one, 
two, or more casualties mark the issues of a day, 
and these culminate, until at last live wagon- 
loads of bodies give evidence of the cunning 
barbarity and numbers of the foe ; when night 
alarms are common, and three men are shot 
within thirty yards of the gates; when the stock- 
ade becomes a prison-wall, and over its trunks 
are seen only the signs of precaution or active 
warfare ; when the men are never idle, but all 
are daily engrossed in essential labor, with no 
signs of reinforcement or aid ; when the usual 
thankless task of opening a new country with itn 



A WOMAN'S CONCLUSIONS. 181 

uncertainties and enmities, with resources ab- 
surdly deficient, meets only obloquy and abuse 
for the principal actors, she acquires somehow, 
whether by instinct or observation, it matters not 
which, an idea that Indians will fight, and some- 
times do become quite wicked and dangerous. 
8urely, their ways are not as our ways, and their 
ponies are not like our horses. Their commis- 
sariat and their forage are not in trains or on 
pack mules ; their campaigns are not extensively 
advertised in advance, nor do they move by regu- 
lar stages or established routes. 

Yes, even a woman, after several hundred 
miles of journey alternately in the ambulance or 
side saddle, sometimes in corral expecting its 
aid for safety, and again in the winding defile, 
where the very place excites the keenest scrutiny 
and is suggestive of noble red men with the no- 
bility ignored, will see some peculiarities of In- 
dian warfare when Indians are really venomous, 
and will draw conclusions for friends to consider, 
even if they only elicit a smile at her timidity, 
simplicity, or weakness. 

James, the novelist, never compelled his soli- 
tary horseman to fight a Sioux, and, had the 
Knight of the Leopard, at the Diamond of the 
Desert, met more than one quiver of the darts of 
the Saracen, his adventures might have ended 
while his career was scarcely begun. Not unlike 
the Arab is the Indian of the Northwest. Iso- 

16 



182 ABSARAKA. 

lated, yetin communication through thelittle mir- 
rors which flasli the sunlight and pass his signals 
for miles ; separated, yet by the lance, pennon, 
and flags combined, when opportunity is invit- 
ing; dashing directly forward at a run, with the 
person crouched on the pony's neck, and wheel- 
ing only to throw himself out of sight and pass 
his arrows and bullets under the animal's neck 
before he returns for a fresh venture ; fleeing 
everywhere, apparently at random, so that his 
pursuer must take choice of object of quest only 
to find his hot XJ'^ii'suit fruitless, with gathered 
numbers in his line of retreat ; shooting up and 
down red buttes, where the horse of the white 
man breaks down at once; running on foot, with 
the trotting pony just behind him seeking a rest 
from the burden of his master ; imitating the cry 
of the wolf and the hoot of the owl, when it will 
hide his night visit, — these Indians are every- 
where, where you suppose they are not; and are 
certain to be nowhere, where you suppose them 
to be, sure. 

In ambush and decoy, splendid ; in horseman- 
ship, per/ed; in strategy, cw/im??^; in battle, i(;an/ 
and careful of life; in victory, jubilant; and in 
vengeance, fiendish and terrible. 

Too few to waste life fruitlessly; too super- 
stitious to leave their dead to the enemy; too 
cunning or niggardly of resources to ofler fair 
fight; too fond of their choice hunting-grounds 



INDIAN WARFARE. 183 

to yield willing possession to the stranger, — they 
wait and watch, and watch and wait, to gather 
the scalps of the unwary and ignorant, and bear 
off their trophies to new feasts, new orgies, and 
new endeavor. 

So reluctant are they to attack a foe under 
cover, that during the year 1866 — once before 
stated — not a train was lost or seriously embar- 
rassed when in corral ; nor was any considerable 
party assailed when it sought judicious and sub- 
stantial defense. Yet, daring and watchful, none 
better estimate the foe they contend with. When 
white men have delivered their fire, and the 
gleam of the ramrod has shown that the single- 
shooting arm was in use, then follows the wild 
dash, with revolvers and arrows, so quick and 
80 spirited that their loss is as nothing, and 
swift ponies take them safely away for renewal 
of attack. Circling and intermingling to con- 
fuse all aim, affecting retreat seemingly to break 
up their array, and by some ravine, gulch, canon, 
or thicket to appear on fresh and better vantage- 
ground, they approximate ubiquity, and till the 
terse discription of the veteran Bridger, "Where 
there ain't no Injuns, you'll find 'em thickest." 

Good judges of numbers, and quick to esti- 
mate the strength and designs of an enemy; 
keen to maintain their scouts and secure due 
notice of reinforcements; rarely, though some- 
times, fighting in masses, but then with such in- 



184 ABSARAKA. 

volved and concerted disorder as to insure their 
purpose, when the plan is to overwhehn alive 
and capture for the torture, — this same Indian 
must find in his final master a better-armed and 
well-disciplined foe, who has studied his country 
and his nature, and this before his peace-offerings 
will be abiding and honest, or his hunting-grounds 
shall become the peaceful path of the traveler. 

With all this, these same Indians have read the 
book of fate, and in the establishment of mutu- 
ally supporting and well-garrisoned strongholds 
they will be foiled as to protracted interruption 
of emigration and travel. When this end is 
reached, and the great route through Absaraka 
is occupied and guarded, the game will flee the 
range of the white man's rifle, and the desperate 
Indian must abandon his home, fight himself to 
death, or yield to the white man's mercy. 

Fired by the progress of the settler and the 
soldier; seeing as never before the last retreat of 
the buffalo, the elk, and the deer invaded by a 
permanent intruder; looking at his rights as 
violated, and the promises of many agents as 
unfulfilled; taught by nature, if not by the 
white man, that he is the lawful tenant of the 
waste he roams over until he has bartered his 
right away, — he has some reason to exclaim, as 
Red Cloud assured Black Horse, when the lat- 
ter, in July, 1866, said, " Let us take the white 
man's hand and what he gives us, rather than 



INDIAN WARFARE. 185 

fight him longer and lose all," — the answer 
was: "White man lies and steals. My lodges 
were many, but now they are few. The white 
man wants all. The white man must fight, and 
the Indian will die where his fathers died." 

Growing conscious of the white man's power, 
knowing how vain is an open field struggle, the}- 
avoid such determining issues, and waylay in 
detail, gradually enlarging their sphere of ac- 
tion, and thereby gathering in the young men 
and disaffected of other bands, until common 
cause may be had of all whose wrongs or temper 
inspire them to keep the war-path longer. 

The frequent change of dwelling-place in a 
great area of hunting-ground gives them pe- 
culiar aptitude for this warfare and peculiar im- 
munity from punishment. A single pony will 
bear and drag the lodge poles of a tepah, and 
the squaws will not only relieve the warriors of 
all menial details, but with the old men and 
boys are no despicable protectors of a village 
when the fighting men are in pursuit of game 
or scalps. 

Thus Indian fighting is no parade of cere- 
mony specifically described in regulations, nor 
an issue between fair and generous opponents. 
It is at all times destruction for the white man 
to fail, and his exposures, his perils, and even 
his successes, so much less heralded and esti- 
mated than in more artificial war with those of 
IG* 



186 ABSARAKA. 

his own race, only bring him the personal con- 
sciousness of duty done to balance wasting years, 
loss of social life, and a bare support. With all 
this, and the sometimes recurring feeling of bit- 
terness prompting the desire to exterminate his 
foe and thereby visit upon him some of the 
horrid scenes he has passed through, there comes 
the inevitable sentiment of pity, and even of 
sympathy with the bold warrior in his great 
struggle ; and in a dash over the plains, or 
breathing the pure air of the mountains, the 
sense of freedom and independence brings such 
contrast with the machinery and formalities of 
much that is called civilized life, that it seems 
but natural that the red man in his pride and 
strength should bear aloft the spear-point, and 
with new resolve fight the way through to his 
final home in the Spirit land. 



THE INDIAN BOW AND ARROW. 187 



CHAPTER XXII. 

INDIAN ARMS, HABITS, AND CUSTOMS — THE ARROW BEATS 
THE REVOLVER. 

Popular opinion has regarded the Indian bow 
and arrow as something primitive and well 
enough for the pursuit of game, but quite use- 
less in a contest with the white man. This idea 
would be excellent if the Indian warriors would 
calmly march up in line of battle and risk their 
masses so armed against others armed with the 
rifle. But the Indian comes as the hornet comes, 
in clouds or singly, yet never trying to sting 
until his ascendency is assured and his own 
exposure is slight. 

At iifty yards a well-shapen, iron-pointed ar- 
row is dangerous and very sure. A handful 
drawn from the quiver and discharged succes- 
sively will make a more rapid fire than that of 
the revolver, and at very short range will farther 
penetrate a piece of plank or timber than the 
ball of an ordinary Colt's navy pistol. 

The arrow-head varies in length and shape, 
and the shaft itself slightly changes, according to 
the tastes of difterent bands or tribes ; and yet so 
constantly are arrows exchanged in gambling or 



188 ABSARAKA. 

barter that the character of the arrow used does 
not invariably determine the tribe engaged. 
Such were many of the arrows taken from the 
bodies of Captains Fetterman, Brown, Lieuten- 
ant Grummond, and others, after the massacre 
of December, 1866. All the peculiarities there 
found have been seen in the quivers of the 
Kittekehas, Chowees, Petropowetaws, and other 
Pawnees, all of whom are friendly, and some 
of whom are now, as in the winter of 1865-6, in 
the employ of the United States. The head is 
often barbed, but not generally, and is from two 
to three and a half inches in length, made of 
iron, and ground to a double edge. The shaft, 
which is about twenty-five inches in length, is 
winged by three feathers of the eagle, sage-hen, 
or wild-goose, and from the sinew wrapping of 
the head to that which binds the feathers is 
deeply marked by three grooves or blood-seams, 
so that when the flesh of man or beast closes 
about the shaft, these seams act as conduits and 
gradually bleed the victim to death. These 
grooves are with some Indians straight, and 
with others are zigzag or winding from midway 
down to the feathers. 

The bows of Ogillalla and Brule Sioux, Arra- 
pahoes, Cheyennes, and most of the Indians east 
of the Rocky Mountains, are from thirty-two to 
forty inches long, of great elasticity and ten- 
sion, so that they easily drive an aiTOW through 



INDIAN ARMS. 189 

a two-inch plank, and even through a man or 
buffalo. 

The hatchet is generally that which is fur- 
nished by Indian agents or traders, often having 
the head and handle hollow and connected for 
use as a pipe ; and, when possible, the handle 
itself is profusely studded with brass nails such 
as once distinguished parlor sofas and chairs. 

Rifles, both English and American, abound. 
The "Hawkins" is a favorite, carrying what is 
called the "trade ball," and requiring a patch; 
but many of the old guides, trappers, and half- 
breeds still cling to their use as in the daj^s of 
Pathfinder and other heroes of Cooper. 

The quiver and bow-case are made of deer- 
skin, bearskin, otter and other hides, or furs; and 
the armament of Hawkeye, which now hangs 
before the writer, is elaborate with tassels and 
pendants from well-dressed beaver. 

The shield is worn by many of the leading 
braves, and is formed of several thicknesses of 
hide fastened through and through about the 
edge with sinew, and studded with brass nails, 
or ornamented with silver and other bright 
metal. 

The spear varies from five and a half to seven 
feet in length, having a head nearly eighteen 
inches long, with a small pennon ; and the heel of 
the shaft is balanced with eagle feathers, while 
others are caught along the shaft, giving steadi- 



190 ABSARAKA. 

ness to the flight, and suiting the diversified 
tastes of the owner. 

The right and left hair of the warrior or brave 
is brought before the ear, braided or twisted, and 
wrapped with strings or ribbons, and falling upon 
the breast; while a third braid, falling behind 
and below the scalp-lock or tuft, often is covered 
with a succession of silver medallions hammered 
from coin, gradually diminishing in size from 
four inches to one inch as the series approaches 
the ground. 

Earrings, necklaces, bracelets, and armlets are 
of brass, beads, bears' claws, or silver, but more 
generally of beautiful combinations of shells 
from the Pacific, seventy-five of which have been 
the price of a pony, and show the close relations 
of trade maintained between the tribes of the 
opposite slopes of the Rocky Mountains. 

Moccasins, leggings, breech-cloth, and a bufiiilo 
robe belted about the waist, leaving the breast 
bare, is the sole dress of the majority. Others 
have jackets more or less fancifully decorated 
with small bullet buttons, and every article of 
dress that an American soldier uses is at once 
assumed when its possession is acquired. Trow- 
sers are, however, cut oiFat the hip, as their own 
style of protection is habitually preferred. Gifts 
of clothing are quickly put on ; and a present of 
gentlemen's underclothes once given to a Pawnee 
was so quickly substituted for his original gar- 



USDIAN HABITS AND CUSTOMS. 191 

ments as barely to allow escape from the room 
during tlie process. 

The women vary little in costume except in a 
wrapping something like a petticoat or skirt, but 
wear less paint. The hair-parting is, however, 
invariably painted vermilion when visiting or in 
full dress, and cheeks, chin, and arms have their 
share of brilliant tints. Warriors, squaws, and 
children alike use the bow and arrow, but the 
women are peculiarly apt with knife and hatchet. 
The youngsters have a javelin exercise which is 
admirably fitted to prepare them for their future 
life. A small hoop is held by the thumb and 
forefinger of the right hand, while within the 
hand is the spear. The hoop is thrown forward 
on the ground, and the javelin is sent after and 
through the ring with great dexterity and success. 
This, with the cast of the hatchet and play of the 
knife, takes the place of the white boy's base- 
ball or marbles; and the blunt-headed arrow 
brings down birds and small game that would be 
spoiled by the keener shaft. 

The revolver is becoming quite common, and 
is used with more dexterity and skill than is the 
rifle. The following instance will illustrate a 
remarkable failure in rifle firing. Soon after 
Captain Fetterman arrived, he rode to the Pinery 
with Lieutenant Bisbee, Captain Ten Eyck, and 
one or two other ofiicers who had just arrived, to 
see the locality. They descended to Pine Island 



192 ABSAEAKA. 

just after the last timber-wagon had come out on 
the road, and in advance of their escort. They 
were received by a volley of from fifteen to 
twenty rifle shots, which were fired from a rest 
upon a fallen tree, at a distance of only fifty 
paces, as actually measured, without injury to 
anybody. A second volley equally failed to touch 
a man. A little bugle-boy brought word to the 
garrison that all were killed, for he saw the In- 
dians as they fired and the ofiicers as they disap- 
peared. They were compelled to skirmish down 
the island before they could extricate themselves 
from the dilemma. A supporting party went out, 
but met them returning, and thus relieved the 
anxiety of the garrison. 

The Indians not only use mirrors and flags for 
signal purposes, but many carry with them good 
field and spy -glasses, some of English styles, pro- 
cured from Canada, and others are supplied by 
traders on the frontier. 

The domestic life of the Indian, with the bar- 
barity of the sun-dance and the filth of his home, 
have been often described ; but the plenitude of 
furs in the land of Absaraka have furnished pe- 
culiar facilities for adornment and somewhat bet- 
ter wardrobes than are usual nearer the Lower 
Missouri and Mississippi waters. Their tepah 
(tepee, or lodge) is the model from which the 
Sibley tent was derived, and will accommodate 
several families; but nothing else on the face of 



\ 



DOMESTIC LIFE OF TUE INDIAN. 193 

the earth, will furnish a more curious medley of 
contents than does a tepah where two or three 
families, of all ages and sizes, with all their 
worldly goods and hopes are huddled, piled, and 
crammed about its fire, and where the fitful wind 
and lazy squaws are combined in the eifort to 
smoke bufialo tongues, strips of meat, and Inji^n 
all together. The picture is complete, by way of 
contrast, if a kettle of boiling water over the tire 
has received a fat dog just after his throat felt 
the knife, and a white oiBcer, on a pile of furs, 
is doing his best to show how gracefully he can 
endure the honors and dinner specially designed 
for his presence. All this, too, while other offi- 
cers and ladies are cheerfully waiting outside in 
the glad consciousness of escape from the hospi- 
tality of a chief. 

Bells, triangles, and common horns have found 
their way among these Indians, and they eagerly 
adopt from the white man whatever makes noise 
or show. 



n 



194 ABSARAKA. 



CHAPTER XXIII. 

MASSACRE OF LIEUTENANT BINGHAM — ACCOtTNTS GIVEN BT 
OFFICERS — EXTRACTS FROM JOURNAL. 

Fort Philip Kearney, December 6th, 1866. I 
hardly know how to take up my sadly interrupted 
journal. This day, with its bright morning, 
brought its sweet promise of rest from Indian 
alarms, and throughout the garrison all work 
was pushed with vigor; but the evening adds 
another sad chapter to the history of our frontier 
life. 

The garrison waited anxiously until nearly nine 
o'clock before the distant bugle-note indicated 
the return of parties which, since nine in the 
morning, have been in pursuit of Indians. It 
seems hardly possible that poor Bingham, the 
gentle, manly, and soldierly young officer, who 
has already won the esteem of everybody, has 
already, so soon after his arrival, fallen a victim 
to his ardor and the craft of our foes. It seems 
that such a disaster has been necessary, to check 
the natural impulse of every one who comes 
here to chase Indians regardless of number or 
rules. Mr. Grummond and Mr. Wands have 
given me the whole history, and it is of God's 



MASSACRE OF LIEUT. BINGHAM. 195 

mercy that any one escaped. Captain Fetterman 
has been in, and says "he has learned a lesson, 
and that this Indian war has become a hand-to- 
hand fight, requiring the utmost caution," and 
he wants no more such risks. 

When the Indians attacked the wood train in 
the morning. Captain Fetterman was sent with 
mounted infantry and a part of Lieutenant Bing- 
ham's cavalry to drive the Indians over Lodge 
Trail Ridge, while the colonel, with Lieutenant 
Grummond and about twenty-five or thirty 
mounted men, crossed Big Piney to intercept 
the party chased by Captain Fetterman. Nearly 
two hundred Indians were in front of Captain 
Fetterman, hotly engaging his party, when fif- 
teen of the cavalry, with Lieutenant Bingham, 
left him, for some reason unknown to everybody. 
The colonel's party pushed for the scene of ac- 
tion, and met the cavalry dismounted on one of 
the forks of Peno, but without Mr. Bingham. 
It seems that he had dashed westward after he 
saw the colonel's party galloping down the hills, 
and Mr. Grummond, by some sudden impulse, 
was led to leave his oAvn party and join Mr. 
Bingham, both disappearing suddenly and nearly 
alone. 

The colonel's party followed down the valley, 
according to original plan, until the opening be- 
low showed a large force of Indians beyond, and 
fast gathering on the flanks. Only seven men 



196 ABSARAKA. 

and a bugle-boy turned the point with him, and 
Indians were constantly circling around to draw 
their fire. Private McGuire's horse went down 
with him, as he gratefully tells his story, and an 
Indian was crawling along to scalp him, when 
the party stopped for him and he was lifted up. 
The recall was sounded, and Corporal Baker 
hearing it rode over a hill from the north, re- 
porting that Lieutenant Bingham had certainly 
gone beyond the second hill, though just then 
there were at least eighty Indians in sight before 
that hill. Soon after Captain Fetterman came 
up, having crossed over to the other party after 
the defection of the cavalry, and a movement 
was made at once for the rescue of Lieutenant 
Bingham. Lieutenant Wands, who had super- 
seded Captain Brown as regimental quartermas- 
ter, was to have started with the colonel, but 
being delayed to exchange his horse, by mistake 
joined the other party. He had been grazed by 
a ball, and probably his coolness and his Henry 
rifle saved that detachment after Lieutenant 
Bingham left it, as the others fired revolvers, 
even at several hundred yards, and Lieutenant 
Bingham threw his away. 

The party rode but a few rods on the hill when 
suddenly a shout was heard: "For God's sake, 
come down quick," and through a gulch Avhere 
the road was visible seven Indians were seen 
with their spear-heads close upon the backs of 



FUNERAL CEREMONIES. 191 

four of our men, one of whom was Lieutenant 
Grummond. 

Mr. Wands thinks, from the formation of the 
ground, that had they passed that ravine a mo- 
ment sooner or later, they would have seen no- 
thing of Mr. Grummond's party until they should 
have found their bodies on return. 

A few moments later the body of Lieutenant 
Bingham was found, and that of Sergeant 
Bowers, who was still living, though his skull 
was cleft through with a hatchet. He hirl killed 
three Indians with his revolver before he was 
overpowered. Private Donovan, always so 
brave, was with the party. They had been sur- 
rounded by thirty Indians while Lieutenants 
Grummond and Bingham were pursuing a dis- 
mounted Indian and cutting at him with sabers. 

An ambulance was sent for, and Captain Ar- 
nold went out with forty men to reinforce the 
party. The remains of Lieutenant Bingham are 
in hospital, to be cared for and prepared for 
burial. 

:|( 9|c ^ :)< ^ % 

December 9th, 1866. Lieutenant Bingham 
and Sergeant Bowers were buried to-day. Lieu- 
tenant Grummond conducted the masonic ser- 
vices, assisted by Mr. Weston, Mr. Saunders, Mr. 
Beckwith and others, while Chaplain White con- 
ducted the religious portion. 
IT* 



198 ABSARAKA. 

Thus our cemetery fills up with only the vic- 
tims of violence! Everything in nature is so 
beautiful, and the climate is so restoring and 
healthful, that one could look upon such frontier 
life with something like complacency were it not 
for these savages, or even if the long and anx- 
iously expected reinforcements could be seen or 
heard from. Sometimes it seems as if nobody 
cared if we had help or not. 

Sergeant Bowers was such a favorite with 
Captain Brown that he placed his own corps- 
badge upon the breast of the remains; and the 
men feel especially vindictive and anxious for 
revenge, as Bowers had so often led the hay par- 
ties and successfully skirmished in defense of 
their work. 

The officers feel more than ever the necessity 
of completing all necessary work and preparing 
for winter, and many believe that we may shortly 
expect, as the Crows indicated, the return of In- 
dians in still larger force, to try and cut oif work 
and supplies, if they do not dare to come near 
the fort and attempt its capture by surprise. 

After the funeral. Lieutenant Grummoud came 
in to speak of the services at the grave, which 
were very impressive, and again expressed his 
gratitude for his preservation. The lesson will not 
be lost, and shows what madness it is to follow 
these Indians very far with insufficient force, and 
what great peril may come to the post and whole 



OUR MAIL EXPECTED. 199 

line of road by rasli impulses and disregard of 
the special work that presses so hard. 

We think now that we shall not soon hear 
from Fort C. F. Smith, as Lieutenant Bingham 
had just returned from that post, having an es- 
cort of twenty-five men; and Brevet Lieutenant- 
Colonel Kinney, who has just made us a week's 
visit, thinks it unsafe to undertake the trip with 
less than an escort of fifty good men. 

Our mail is overdue, and no doubt the courier 
and mail party are detained as guides to troops. 
The sentries understand they are not to fire at 
messengers coming from the east, and we shall 
soon have letters and papers after a long inter- 
mission. Perhaps the news of our difiiculties 
has by this time been received, and nearly six 
months of trial may be succeeded by six months 
of triumph. We learn, as did Crusoe, how 
much can be done during comparative isolation 
from a civilized world. 

Note. — Ked Cloud bad command in person on the 6th of 
December, and white signal-flags were displayed, covering a 
line of seven miles. 



200 ABSARAKA. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

FETTERMAN'S massacre — ITS LESSONS, 

December, 21st, 1866, was to us the saddest 
day of the year. Though snow covered the 
mountains, and there was every indication of the 
return of severe weather, the morning was quite 
pleasant. Men only wore blouses at their work, 
and the train, although much later than usual, 
went to the Pinery with a strong guard, so that 
the teamsters, choppers, and escort, all armed, 
numbered not far from ninety men. 

The children ran in about 11 o'clock, shouting 
"Indians!" and the pickets on Pilot Hill could 
be distinctly seen giving the signal of " many In- 
dians," on the line of the wood road; and news 
was also furnished that the train was in corral 
only a short distance from the garrison. 

The officers and all the ladies were soon watch- 
ing for other usual demonstrations, while a de- 
tail was being organized to relieve the train. 

Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Fetterman, then 
walking back and forth before his quarters, near 
where the colonel was giving his instructions, 
asked and obtained permission to go with 1be 
detachment. 



FETTERMAN'S MASSACRE. 201 

Lieutenant Grrummond, also at his own re- 
quest, took a part of Company C, 2d United 
States Cavalry, — making the whole force just 
seventy-eight officers and men. Captain Brown, 
unknown to the officers of the garrison, as well 
as citizens "Wheatley and Fisher, both experi- 
enced frontiersmen and good shots, also joined 
the party. 

It was just at the time when a few more trains 
of saw-logs would furnish ample lumber material 
to complete the office building and a fifth com- 
pany quarters, already well under progress. 

The orders were given in front of Lieutenant 
Grummond's house, next the colonel's, and those 
who were present heard them repeated with dis- 
tinctness and special urgency. Lieutenant Wands 
was also instructed to repeat them. As if pecu- 
liarly impressed with some anticipations of rash- 
ness in the movement, the colonel, just after the 
command left, went across the parade-ground to 
a sentry platform, halted the mounted party, and 
gave additional orders, understood in the garri- 
son, and by those who heard them, to be the sub- 
stantial repetition of the former. 

The health of Mrs. Grummond was such that 
Lieutenant Wands and other friends urged him, 
for his family's sake, to be prudent, and avoid all 
rash movements and any pursuit that would draw 
them over Lodge Trail Ridge, and to report to 
Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Fetterman the orders 



202 ABSARAKA. 

he had received. These orders were, ui so many 
words, " to relieve the train, and under no cir- 
cumstances to cross the ridge." Everybody 
knew why special emphasis was given to these 
orders. 

Only two days before. Brevet Major Powell 
had been sent out to relieve a train, and obeyed 
his orders literally, although, as he afterward 
said, he was sorely tempted to pursue, but be- 
came afterward convinced that certain destruc- 
tion would have been the result. Major Powell 
was in fact assigned to command the relieving 
party on the 21st ; but when Brevet Lieutenant- 
Colonel Fetterman stepped forward and claimed 
it by seniority of rank, he was permitted to go 
and received his instructions. 

The day before, and succeeding that on which 
Major Powell had reported several hundred In- 
dians present, the colonel himself took charge of 
trains to the Pinery, spending the day in building 
a bridge over the creek and superintending the 
chopping parties and guard detail. All the indi- 
cations were that the numerous Indian villages 
on Tongue River would lose no chance to do 
mischief, and the garrison was insufficiently sup- 
plied with arms, even of old styles, for the men 
actually at the post. Before Captain Fetterman 
left, a few Indian pickets were seen on Lodge 
Trail Ridge, and a few were below the fort at 
the road crossing. Two or three case shot. 



FETTERMAN'S MASSACRE. 203 

dropped near them, dismounted one and brought 
nearly thirty out of the brush. These at once 
disappeared. After the detachment had been 
gone a short time, finding that Captain Fetterman 
had left without a surgeon, the colonel sent Dr. 
Hines, with one of his own orderlies, to join the 
train and report to Captain Fetterman ; Doctor 
Hines started, but soon returned with the news 
that the train had safely pursued its route to the 
woods; that Captain Fetterman was on the ridge 
to the north, out of view, and that there was so 
many Indians in sight that he could not join the 
party. It was about noon, and a man rushed in 
to say that firing was renewed. Every shot could 
be heard, and there was little doubt that a despe- 
rate fight was going on in the valley of Peno 
Creek beyond the ridge. The presence of Lieu- 
tenant Grummond with the party gave us new 
anxiety, and man}^ heartfelt prayers were offered 
that he might return in safety. The colonel 
was on the "lookout," on headquarters build- 
ing, and gave his orders before coming down. 

It seemed long, but was hardly twelve minutes 
before Captain Ten Eyck, Lieutenant Matson, 
Dr. Hines, and Dr. Ould, with a relieving party, 
were moving, on the run, for the scene of action. 
We had all watched Captain Fetterman until the 
curve of Sullivant Hills shut him ofi', and then 
he was on the southern slope of the ridge, ap- 
parently intending to cut off' the retreat of the In- 



204 



ABSAEAKA 




FORT PHILIP KEARNEY AND SURROUNDINGS, FROM ORIGINAL SURVEYS. 



* Indicates block-houses in Tvoods for working parties. 

Dotted line, roads to Pine Island and Mountain. 

Broken line, road to Virginia City, crossing narrow divide where bodies of Fet- 

terinan's command were found. 
C, cemetery at foot of Pilot Hill. 
□ Corral, on road to woods, where train was attacked December 21st, 1866. 



FETTERMAN'S MASSACRE. 205 

dians from the train. "Wagons and ambulances 
were hurried up ; the whole garrison was on the 
alert; extra ammunition for both parties was 
started, and even the prisoners were put on duty 
to give the guard and all available men their 
perfect freedom for whatever might transpire. 
Couriers were sent to the woods to bring back 
the train and its guard, to secure its support, as 
well as from the fear that the diversion of Cap- 
tain Fetterman from his orders might still in- 
volve its destruction ; and shortly Captain Arnold 
came to report that the whole force of armed 
men left at the post, including guard and every- 
thing, was but one hundred and nineteen men. 

Until the wagons galloped out of the gate, we 
could see a solitary Indian on the highest part 
of Lodge Trail Ridge ; but he soon disappeared. 
All this time firing was increasing in intensity, 
and in little more than thirty minutes, — after one 
or two quick volleys, the rattle of file-firing, and 
a few scattering shots, — a perfect silence ensued. 
There were then many anxious hearts, and waiting 
was perfectly terrible ! The movements of Cap- 
tain Ten Eyck were watched with in tensest inter- 
est. The pickets could give no information, and 
a messenger sent upon Sullivant Hills could see 
neither Indians nor troops. It was just before 
Captain Ten Eyck's party reached the top of the 
hill across the Piney, north of the Virginia City 
road, that all firing ceased. Soon orderly Sarn- 
ie 



206 ABSARAKA. 

pie was seen to break away from the command 
and make for the fort, with his horse, on the run. 
lie brought the message that the valleys were 
full of Indians, and that several hundred were on 
the road below, yelling and challenging them to 
come down; but nothing could be seen of Fetter- 
man. As was afterward learned, this party was 
on the very field of carnage, and doubtless they 
were completing their robbery and butchery. 
It was after dark when Captain Ten Eyck re- 
turned, with forty-nine of the bodies, and made 
the terrible announcement that all were killed. 

To a woman whose house and heart received 
the widow as a sister, and whose oifice it was to 
advise her of the facts, the recital of the scenes of 
that day, even at this late period, is full of pain; 
but at the time, the Christian fortitude and holy 
calmness with which Mrs. Grummond looked 
upward to her Heavenly Father for wisdom and 
strength, inspired all with something of her 
same patience to know the worst and meet its 
issues. 

The body of Lieutenant Grummond had not 
been rescued, and there was some faint hope 
that stragglers might yet come in and break the 
absolute gloom of the tragedy by some explana- 
tory and redeeming feature. 

At last the wood train came in, having seen 
nothing of Fetterman, not even having heard 
the firing, or suspected any additional danger 



SEARCH FOR THE DEAD. 207 

after repulsing their own immediate assailants. 
Imagination only can suggest how wide-sweep- 
ing would have been the massacre had any con- 
siderable portion of the hostile bands renewed 
the attack upon the train after the successful 
decoy of the others to inevitable destruction. 

With the next morning came a meeting of 
officers, with universal disinclination, generally 
expressed, to venture a search for the remaining 
dead. The safety of any small party seemed 
doubtful, and the post itself might be imper- 
iled by a large draft upon the garrison. But 
the colonel had made up his mind, and freely 
expressed his purpose "not to let the Indians 
have the conviction that the dead could not be 
rescued;" and besides this, the very men who 
had passed through the war without blanching 
began to form ideas of the numbers and bar- 
barity of the Indians, which threatened to take 
away one-half their real strength. So the colo- 
nel informed Mrs. Grummond that he should go 
in person, and would bring home her husband. 
Captain Ten Eyck, Lieutenant Matson, and Dr. 
Ould went with the party. Long after they left, 
and they left with the cheerful Godspeed of 
every woman and soldier of the garrison, on a 
holy mission, the pickets, which were distributed 
on the line of march, indicated their progress, 
and showed that neither the fort nor the de- 
tachment could be threatened without such 



208 ABSARAKA. 

connection of signals as would advise both and 
secure co-operation whatever might ensue. 

Long after dark, the wagons and command re- 
turned with the remaining dead, slowly passing 
to the hospital and other buildings made ready 
for their reception. 

Lieutenant Grummond's body was found, and 
eventually accompanied us on our midwinter's 
march back over the plains. 

A careful roll-call of the garrison was had, 
and the body of every missing man was found. 
Wheatley and Fisher were discovered near a pile 
of rocks, surrounded by expended cartridges, 
proving that their Henry rifles had done good ser- 
vice. All the bodies lay along or near a narrow 
divide over which the road ran, and to which no 
doubt the assailed party had retreated when 
overwhelming numbers bore down upon them. 
Captains Fetterman and Brown were at the 
point nearest the fort, each with a revolver shot 
in the left temple, and so scorched with powder 
as to leave no doubt that they shot each other 
when hope had fled. So ended lives that were full 
of pride and confidence in the morning. Captain 
Brown's repeated dashes, and especially his suc- 
cess on the 23d of September, had inspired him 
with perfectly reckless daring in pursuit of In- 
dians ; and only the night before the massacre 
he made a call, with spurs fastened in the but- 
ton-holes of his coat, leggings wrapped, and two 



LESSONS OF THE MASSACRE. 209 

revolvers accessible, leclaring, by way of ex- 
planation, that he was ready by day and night, 
and must have one scalp before leaving for Lar- 
amie, to which place he had been ordered. He 
had inspired Captain Fetterman, who had been 
but a short time in the country, and already had 
great contempt for our adversaries, with the 
same mad determination to chase whenever 
they could, regardless of numbers; and together 
they planned an expedition of a week's trip to 
Tongue River valley, with a mixed party of 
ninety citizens and soldiers, to destroy the In- 
dian villages and clear out all enemies. Disap- 
proval of the plan did not change their belief in 
its feasibility and wisdom; but here were eighty- 
one officers and men, and among them the vet- 
erans of a long war, utterly destroyed in their 
hands, only six or seven miles on the route to 
that same Tongue River valley. 

This massacre proved the value and integrity 
of Major Bridger and his statements, and no less 
showed the wisdom of a settled policy not to pre- 
cipitate or undertake a general war while there 
was but a handful of men at the post; and the 
army had not yet received such increase as could 
promise any considerable support. 

A kind Providence spared many, and the line 
of road opened in the summer of 1866 was main- 
tained. Other regiments have strengthened the 
garrisons, and a year of changes finds the Indians 
18* 



210 ABSARAKA. 

still numerous and unpunished, but with the line 
still maintained; while the fruits of the labor of 
1866 are yet to be valued when that country shall 
be occupied and sufficiently understood. If the 
line be abandoned by its garrisons, as is probable, 
to give better security for the Union Pacific Rail- 
road, and if its choice hunting-grounds be given 
to the Indians, who seem to have a right to them 
at present, it cannot be doubted that the work 
done will have its value, and Eastern Montana 
will ultimately perfect its communications with 
the Missouri through the field of so much strug- 
gle and duty. 



PREPARATIONS FOR THE FUNERAL. 211 



CHAPTER XXV. 



THE FUNERAL, AND BURIAL OP FOURSCORE AND ONE VIC- 
TIMS OF THE MASSACRE — COLD AND SAD HOLIDAYS — EX- 
PEDITIONS ABANDONED — REINFORCEMENTS OF AUGUST YET 
BEHIND. 



The bodies of the dead were first deposited in 
the spare ward of the hospital, two hospital-tents, 
and a double cabin. Details from each company 
assisted in their care and recognition. Many- 
gave their best uniforms, decently to clothe their 
comrades, — and the noblest traits of the soldier 
were touchingly developed as they carefully han- 
dled the mutilated fragments, drew out or cut 
off the arrows, and decently composed all for the 
burial. 

A long line of pine cases, duly numbered, was 
arranged by companies along the officers' street, 
near the hospital, and as each body was placed 
in its plain receptacle, the number and name was 
taken, for the future reference of friends. 

The detail to dig a grave for this great entomb- 
ment was well armed, and accompanied by a 
guard ; but so intense was the cold that constant 
relays were required, and the interment was not 
achieved until Wednesday after the fight. 



212 ABSARAKA. 

Over the great pit, fifty feet long and seven 
feet deep, a mound was raised, and tlie dead were 
buried with a sad and solemn stillness that will 
long leave its memory with those who had souls 
to estimate the circumstances and lessons of that 
dire calamity. 

As if Nature herself were shocked by the 
enormity of the Indian torture there inflicted, 
and would still the passions of all, or forbid their 
immediate indulgence, it so happened that from 
the very night of December 21st the winter be- 
came unmitigated in its severity, requiring guards 
to be changed at least half hourly, preventing 
out-of-door inspections of the guard, and driving 
offlcers, ladies, and men to beaver, bufialo, or 
wolf skins for protection from the cold. 

The relief, as they hastened to their regular 
distribution, presented no bad idea of Lapland or 
Siberian life. The tastes, workmanship, and 
capital of the wearers were variously illustrated 
in their personal wardrobes. A uniform cap 
being useless and hardly endurable, even with 
coat-cape fastened, hood-like, over the head, 
the soldiers had permission to suit themselves 
in respect of substantial comfort. Mittens that 
ended at the shoulder; buflfalo boots and leggings 
nearly to the thigh ; hats as tall as a Polander's, 
with bushy wolf tails pewc^cm^; and tippets, com- 
forts, coats, and vests of skins made an odd style 
of uniform under the existing Regulations for 



COLD AND SAD HOLIDAYS. 213 

the better government of the Army of the United 
States. There were, indeed, times when the 
smallest possible number of men were allowed 
to be exposed, and these only while the corporal 
could return to the guard-house and fresh relief 
might promptly follow up the same routine of 
constant change. Some were frosted in crossing 
the parade, some on their sentry platforms ; and 
guard duty with keeping warm were the princi- 
pal work of all who had no part in hauling water, 
cutting wood, the care of stock, or the issue of 
supplies. 

The holidays were sad as the}' were cold. 
Lights were burned in all quarters, and one non- 
commissioned officer was always on duty in each 
building, so that in case of alarm there could not 
be an instant's delay in the use of the whole 
command. Each company knew its place and 
the distribution of the loop-holes; the gunners 
slept in tents near their guns, and all things were 
ripe for the destruction of assailants should any 
venture to attack. 

The constant and drifting snow-storms soon so 
lifted their crests by the west flank of the stock- 
ade that officers walked over its trunks, and 
when a trench ten feet wide was cleared, the 
next snow or wind would fill it, as only snow 
can snow and winds can blow in that suburb of 
Cloud Peak, the home of perpetual snow. 

The men themselves, who, at the October mus- 



214 ABSARAKA. 

ter, looked forward to the holidays and Decem- 
ber muster with glad anticipations, forbore all 
demonstrations usual to such a period, and 
sensibly felt the weight of the great loss in- 
curred. 

Of the sergeants who had distinguished them- 
selves in the previous war, or had actively oper- 
ated in the labors of 1866, nearly all of the most 
prominent had fallen: Lang, a martinet, trim, 
upright, and soldierly ; Bissell, calm, mature, 
and carrying into his profession the sturdy habits 
of business which had marked his life in Chicago 
before a hasty indiscretion impelled him to the 
army; Smith, the pride of the mounted infantry; 
Morgan, and many others, deserve an enduring 
monument over their last resting-place no less 
than heroes of more exalted stations from more 
memorable battle-fields. 

The whole garrison shared the gloom. Cha- 
rades, tableaus, Shakspearian readings, the usual 
muster evening levee at the colonel's, and all the 
social reunions which had been anticipated as 
bringing something pleasant, and in the simili- 
tude of civilized life, were dropped as unseason- 
able and almost unholy. Present and exacting 
duty admitted no dalliance with pleasures that 
were at other times rational and refreshing; and 
a calm, sedate, but genial sympathy brought 
most to a closer fraternity, almost confirming the 
sacred proverb, " That it is better to go to the 



EXPEDITIONS ABANDONED. 215 

house of mourning than to the house of feast- 
mg." 

But no calm review, no wealth of language 
can bring before the minds of strangers to those 
scenes any conception of the realities experienced; 
neither would a literal catalogue of mutilations 
and outrages upon the persons of the fallen bring 
within the range of any imagination the capa- 
city to present them as they were to the under- 
standing of others. The aggregate of wrongs to 
single individuals would sum up the shocking 
features of many battle-fields ; and the sum of 
all inflicted upon the entire party can have no 
precedent by which to estimate their horrors. 

Nor was the abandonment of the proper rec- 
reation of the holidays the sole result. 

Plans had been made looking to a short win- 
ter expedition, under the advice of General Cooke, 
that " three hundred infantry, with much suffer- 
ing, could perhaps do more in winter than three 
thousand cavalry in summer." The exact me- 
thod of doing this had not been settled upon, it 
is believed, though much talked of in social cir- 
cles, where the ladies had the privilege of listen- 
ing; and it was known that the colonel was de- 
termined, as soon as reinforced, to make such 
reconnoissances and outside movements as would 
test its practicability without risk to the post ; 
but the destruction of Fetterman's command 
within a few miles of the post engendered doubts, 



216 ABSAEAKA. 

which were freely expressed by the officers, whe- 
ther the force that could be made available, even 
after a successful march and surprise, could en- 
tirely or signally destroy the villages of Red 
Cloud, with his warriors, hiskniving squaws, and 
shooting papooses. Underlying these facts was 
the general congratulation that a successful main- 
tenance of the post until spring should reopen 
the road to travel, would be a practical assurance 
to the Indian of the ultimate extinction of his 
hunting-grounds and the end of his supremacy 
in Absaraka. Others suggested that perhaps 
Red Cloud had concluded to keep himself vigor- 
ously awake, and try the surprise part himself, 
or so occupy himself as to consolidate all hostile 
bands into some comprehensive system of hos- 
tility to the post and the white man generally. 

Besides this, it was a matter of notoriety and 
fact that, while the officers were anxious for re- 
peating arms or breech-loaders, only old styles 
of rifles were on the way, and also that ammuni- 
tion, not more than four or live months pre- 
viously started from Leavenworth, was resting 
itself at some place not disclosed to the white 
warriors of Absaraka. Then the reinforcements 
had not come ; and as the affiiir of the 21st, with 
the details of the same, had actually engrossed 
the time and energies of the whole garrison, the 
entire plan of destroying the Indians of the 
Northwest, while the mercury was motionless 



PREPARATION FOR CONTINGENCIES. 217 

and the snow was all in motion, was temporarily 
dropped. 

True it was that the spirit which drove Fetter- 
man to hasty disobedience and certain destruc- 
tion, viz., a desire to settle accounts for some of 
the outrages perpetrated during our six months' 
sojourn, had somewhat decidedly inspired all the 
ladies, as well as the officers and men, with a 
longing to do something explosive and brilliant; 
but the ladies had so often been told not to dis- 
cuss military matters, and the tide of events hav- 
ing unfavorably settled the prospect of our hus- 
bands' gaining glory by miraculous adventures 
with lied Cloud, there was a quiet acquiescence 
in the condition of self-defense. 

A stranger might have almost thought we were 
besieged. The commanders of Forts C. F. Smith 
and Reno so construed their condition ; and the 
constant watchfulness, strict discipline, and ever- 
present preparation for all contingencies savored 
not a little of the same essence, as we passed the 
holidays of 1866-7 at Fort Philip Kearney, Ab- 
saraka. 



19 



218 A BSARAKA. 



CHAPTER XXVI. 



COMEDY OF ERRORS — ENTERPRISE OF THE PRESS — TRANSAC- 
TIONS IN ABSARAKA MYSTERIOUSLY KNOWN TO THE PUB- 
LIC BEFORE THEY HAD INFORMATION OF THE SAME. 



Has any military event in history, whether 
sacred or profane, immediately after its occur- 
rence called forth more elaborate and general 
explanation, and involved more contradictory 
and absurd criticism, all "founded upon fact," 
yet ignorant of that valuable article, than the 
massacre near Fort Phil Kearney, December 
21st, 1866? 

Of course the public could not be expected to 
know, nor the press to announce, that the only 
means of communication between that post and 
Fort Laramie, the nearest mail and telegraph 
station, was through two hundred and thirty-five 
miles of hostile country and through couriers 
sent by the post commander himself. 

^Neither could the great American people ivait 
for information; but they must know exactly 
and fully all the particulars for perusal while 
coifee was cooling at the next morning's break- 
fast-table. 

It was, of course, to be expected that the Illus- 



ENTERPRISE OF THE PRESS. 219 

trated Papers should act promptly and perspicu- 
ously, with all the embellishment and accuracy 
which wood engraving affords, and do this so 
truly to life that it would be at once recognized 
by all actors in its scenes; and it was equally 
certain and necessary that a "special artist," 
some "actual observer," or a "special corre- 
spondent," should furnish the editor's sanctum 
with the right material for his use in advance of 
the mails. There was certainly no difficulty as 
to historical precedents or illustrations of Indian 
warfare from which to combine a proper sketch, 
and accordingly the work was begun, even before 
the couriers had reached Laramie with details of 
the transaction itself. 

As there was no one to contradict, and no one 
who knew the truth, a large margin was left for 
the play of the fancy, and the imagination was 
drawn upon with great freedom and success. 
The people were of course greatly shocked by 
the tragedy, and were certain that somebody was 
terribly to blame. The Indians were supposed 
to be so quiet and peaceful that nobody asked 
whether the massacre was one of a series; but 
statesmen as well as editors, those who claimed 
to know all about Indian afiliirs, and those who 
never saw a live Indian out of a city show, do- 
vised theory upon theory, to the great delight 
of their own complacent souls and with all the 
wonderful wisdom of absolute ignorance. 



220 ABSARAKA. 

It could not be expected, in the urgent demand 
for particulars, that truth and justice would be 
the essential features of the whole; and the sen- 
sation had to be used just at the time, or some- 
body's paper or somebody's friend would suppose 
that somebody else, who was regularly compen- 
sated to cater to the popular passion for the start- 
ling and novel, was ignorant of that of which he 
knew nothing. So it happened that numberless 
journals obtained, at last, the ir'ue version of that sad 
affair. 

]!^ot to name those papers and thus arouse invid- 
ious distinctions where so many showed brilliant 
powers of imagination, a few choice selections 
will do honor to them all and injustice to none. 

Albany, a city set on a hill, Argus-eyed and 
sagacious, had a corresponding pre-eminence in 
the way of invention and preciseness of detail. It 
portrayed, as "/ro???. reliable information,'' the fear- 
ful climax, " when the last band of survivors were 
driven to the gates of the fort, knocking and 
screaming in vain for admission ; when the last 
cartridge from revolver, carbine, and rifle was 
expended; when the sabers and butts of muskets 
were broken; and when, leaning against the 
gates, weary and bleeding and all resistance fruit- 
less, all fell in one heap of mangled humanity, 
unsupported and uncared for." This sketch 
closed its recital with the startling announce- 
ment that the commanding officer, whom it 



ENTERPRISE OF THE PRESS. 221 

doomed to future obloquy, with two full compa- 
nies, was looking on, afraid either to fire or open 
the gates lest the garrison within should be mas- 
sacred by the infuriated savages and the post 
should be sacked ! 

Block-houses, of course, reserved their fire! 
Loop-holes shone with the glaring eyes of fright- 
ened soldiery, but not with the gleaming rifle ! 
Four howitzers, which could have swept the 
slope and bottom land, were silent and innocent 
of harm to anybody! 

And yet, as a matter of fact, the fight was not 
within sight of the fort ; and its capacity for de- 
fense or the support of any party near by was 
superior to the whole force of Indians in Tongue 
River valley. 

One "Illustrated Paper" had a report "from 
the only eye-witness of the massacre." This 
person was said "to have been cut ofi" from his 
party by Indians, and from a thicket only two 
hundred and fifty yards distant from the fight 
he saw the repeated charges of the cavalry, the 
dashing adventures of officers and men, and the 
last shot discharged by the last survivor through 
his own brain." 

And yet, as a matter of fact, the very person 
accredited with this narrow escape and these 
providential aids to a close observation, did not 
see a shot fired by the party, or any part of the 
conflict; but went out with Captain Ten Eyck's 
19* 



222 ABSARAKA. 

relieving party, after failing to find Fetterman's 
party when firing was heard, and saw what 
Captain Ten Eyck saw of the fight, and that was 
— nothing. 

A second "Illustrated Paper" had an en- 
graving of the fight, and indicated in advance 
what should be done with the post commander. 
Others were hardly outdone by this. All had a 
convenient scapegoat for the whole afiair. The 
gallantry and prowess of some were praised, 
while dereliction and cowardice were branded 
upon others. 

Even the metropolitan papers of New York 
and Washington could not possibly wait, but 
discharged their shafts, regardless of character 
or truth. Thus pamphlets, letters, editorials, 
and pictures expressed their theories or positive 
statements; so that beyond the opinion of Lieu- 
teuant-General Sherman accompanying a sol- 
dier's letter, published at Washington in a pam- 
phlet, with other documents sent to Congress 
upon the massacre, and a critique of the Cincin- 
nati Gazette upon the pamphlet itself (author un- 
known to us), no correct account of the tragedy 
has ever gained access to the people at large. 

To those who were present under the shadow 
of such a calamity, it seemed harsh and brutal 
that, more than two thousand miles away, there 
should be such quick and morbid ambition to 
citicise and abuse; and the ladies were not a 



STORIES OF CORRESPONDENTS. 223 

whit behind the officers and men in thoroughly 
wishing that delegations from the eastern cities 
could spend some days in that country to try 
a few dashes after Indians, and take a turn at 
guard or picket duty, and live a time where 
newspapers are sometimes two months in com- 
ing, where bacon takes the place of sea-food, and 
desiccated materials put on the name and func- 
tion of vegetables. 

We had become perfectly accustomed and 
hardened to correspondents from the plains, 
whose warped or false representations discred- 
ited every good thing. Thus, for instance, three 
papers among those of the largest circulation in 
the country declared that the commanding offi- 
cer was constantly giving powder to his enemies, 
and that ladies threw packages of sugar and cof- 
fee over the stockade to the squaws. A tender- 
hearted, sympathetic, but temporary attache of 
the Indian Bureau knew just how the massacre 
occurred — viz., that the poor, hungry, starving 
women of the Sioux had come to beg, and their 
husbands had come to ask a little powder for 
hunting and to have an order revoked as to gifts 
of arms to Indians, and, being fired upon, they 
became desperate and took immediate ven- 
geance. This critic, whose narration had its 
place on the tables of members of Congress, 
said a wood train could not have more than six 
men with it, and could not possibly have been 



224 ABSARAKA 

attacked by three hundred Indians. He did not 
know how slowly six men would have built a 
post; nor that the timber trains sometimes num- 
bered ninety or more wagons, each drawn by six 
mules; that each team required a driver; that 
the work required choppers and loaders and a 
guard to protect them ; and that six men could 
not do this. 

Some supposed that the whole was caused by 
ignorance of the Indian tricks and habits, and of 
the surrounding country, notwithstanding the 
fact that some of the officers not involved in the 
skirmish had spent the summer and fall in just 
such warfare and in reconnoissance of the coun- 
try for miles in all directions. 

Every conceivable hypothesis but the correct 
one was adopted, and everybody guessed, without 
seeming to think that possibly the authorities of 
the fort itself knew something of the affair, and 
were old enough to make some official report of 
the matter. 

One said that the soldiers abused the squaws 
and the women of the country, although, except 
at the July meeting with the Cheyennes and the 
short stay of French Pete's rescued wife, there 
was never a squaw at the fort. 

At least three disappointed aspirants for civil 
berths became newspaper correspondents and 
traducers; but the sting of their falsehoods was 
innocuous, as their inducement was understood. 



SENATE CALLS FOR THE REPORT. 225 

One and all gloried in abuse; and no wonder 
is it that the hard labor of 1866, its skirmishes 
and exposures, its chases and its losses, were 
never told, lest credit should inure to the pioneer 
expedition to Absaraka. 

The information supplied, and that manufac- 
tured, alike furnished some amusement to the 
garrison ; but, for the sake of many friends who 
were anxious to learn the truth, it would have 
been grateful to the feelings had the truth been 
made known, to accompany the false as its anti- 
dote. At last the United States Senate called 
for the report of the commanding officer, at the 
April session, 1867, and again at the July session ; 
and when it appears, some additional light may 
be furnished by which to confirm or disprove 
this comedy of errors. 

Note. — Although Brigadier-General P. St. George Cooke 
removed Colonel Carrington from Fort Phil Kearney, with- 
out waiting for that officer's report, no sooner was that report 
received by Lieutenant-General Sherman, than General Cooke 
was himself relieved, and General Augur was assigned to fill 
his place. 

Note. — (Edition of 1878.) The general history of opera- 
tions, the text of Chapter XXIV., and the Official Eeport of 
Appendix I., are deemed sufficient explanation of Fetterman's 
massacre, without the Eeport of Col. Carrington, although 
its use has been authorized by the War Department. 



226 ABSARAKA. 



CHAPTER XXYIL 

NEW year's changes — MARCH TO FORT RENO — FORTY DE- 
GREES BELOW ZERO — HOW IT FELT AND WHAT IT DID. 

Kew Year's Day, 1867, was without its an- 
ticipated festivities. All honor to the 27th In- 
fantry, — until then the 2d Battalion of the 18th 
Infantry, and which on the last day of Decem- 
ber severed its relations with the old regiment, — 
that during the holiday week they accepted their 
sad lesson, and with manly self-denial refrained 
from those indulgences w^hich are so common 
at Christmas and the advent of a New Year. 

On l!Tew Year's Day the Military Reservation 
was finally announced, in orders, giving to the 
burial-place of the victims of that great disaster 
a memorial character, honorable to the courage 
of the fallen. 

A few days after, Brevet Brigadier-General 11. 
W. Wessels, Lieutenant-Colonel of the 18th, a 
soldier with laurels and a gentleman without 
blemish, arrived with two companies of cavalry 
and four companies of infantry, of which one com- 
pany was to be left at ITort Reno, his former post. 

Orders came to remove headquarters to Fort 
Caspar, and all preparation was duly made. 
General Dandy, Chief Quartermaster, with dis- 



MARCH TO FORT RENO. 221 

cernraent and courtesy, fitted up army wagons 
for the women and children, and deserves due 
thanks for our earthly salvation, as that prepara- 
tion alone secured us a safe deliverance during 
the trip that ensued. 

"After night cometh the morning," and at 
Crazy Woman's Fork, January 25th, 1867, the 
order of nature was regularly preserved. We 
left Fort Philip Kearney at half-past one p.m. of 
the 23d, just at the hour fixed. Packing had 
been done, wagons were loaded, houses had been 
evacuated for new-comers, and although the 
snow again began its fantastic drifting and plen- 
tiful resupply, the march had to be made, and 
the extinct road could hardly become more dis- 
tinct, but possibly even worse. 

By ten o'clock at night, by dint of shoveling 
and picking at proper intervals, nearly six miles 
had been attained, and the train corraled on a 
commanding summit to wait for the coming 
moon. 

Lieutenant Bowman had been detailed to com- 
mand the escort of twenty cavalry and forty in- 
fantry as far as Fort Reno, and discharged his 
trust with unwavering diligence and acceptance. 

At one o'clock a.m. the bugle sounded, and 
just at three o'clock our invaluable guide and 
scout. Captain Bailey, reported "that himself 
and moon were ready." The sky had cleared, 
the stars were brilliant, and the aurora borealis 



228 ABSARAKA. 

faintly endeavored to show itself and cheer our 
onward way. 

It is picturesque so to travel. Napoleon, it is 
reported, traveled over snow, but left his family ; 
and the novelty of the movement of officers, 
their wives and children, and the usual families 
of band musicians, with their liberal allowance of 
future trumpeters, flutists, and drummers, gave 
this march a distinguishing feature not usually 
credited to that masterly winter trip of ISTapo- 
leon to Italy by the way of the Alps. The 
wheels creaked, the mules made their usual vocal 
sounds at the early disturbance of their feed, and 
everybody shrunk into clothing as closely as 
possible to evade the increasing cold. 

The thermometer hanging in our wagon al- 
lowed the mercury to do its share of shrinkage, 
and lingered about thirteen degrees below zero, 
with great apparent hesitation, if not positive re- 
luctance, at being kept out of the bulb. Stalk- 
ing in front, leading his pony, stamping through 
drifts and feeling his way, guide Bailey led oflt* 
with inordinate self-possession, not to say cool- 
ness, and soon after daylight we were once more 
in camp at Clear Fork. Breakfast was soon 
over, the mules were fed, and the march pro- 
ceeded. It was the remark of Captain Arnold 
that it was ^^ stunning cold," and before twenty- 
four hours more were passed it became clearly 
evident that he had the right idea, and that ex- 



INTENSE COLD. 229 

pression will hereafter be to us not a provincial- 
ism of doubtful origin, but a Simon pure exponent 
of that style of cold. 

Of course for awhile there was a keen watch 
for Indians, since as they see everything and 
know everything, it was just possible that they 
might envy us our horses, mules, and scalps; but 
the country was covered with buffalo, who did 
not even pay us the compliment of being scared, 
and in fact for twenty-five miles they were never 
out of view. Their quiet labor in the snow, wal- 
lowing and trampling for grass, was also a posi- 
tive assurance, so said Bailey, that they had no 
red men in company. 

So we plowed, dug, and plodded on. Before 
night we were at Crazy "Woman's Fork. That 
any one of the party left it alive, and made the 
next march, now seems a wonder. The corral was 
formed in the grove at the bend of the stream, 
and wood was abundant after digging it out of 
the snow, but there a wood fire actually lost one- 
half its virtue. As fast as snow melted and rolled 
from the billets, which were heaped on as high 
as a man could reach, the same melted snow 
turned to ice, and each fire was soon girt about 
by constantly thickening ice. To stand fronted 
to the flame, then reversed, and to do this con- 
stantly that fearfully long night, was the resort 
of almost everybody. Cooking was out of the 
question. Hatchets broke our bread, and water 
20 



220 ABSARAKA. 

was sufficiently warmed to thaw the chunks. 
Slices were not attempted. Thanks to our little 
stoves, the ladies essayed the luxury of steeped, 
not to say hot coffee, and with partial success. 
l!^one of the special artists who portrayed the 
massacre accompanied us, but the picture of an 
entertainment given to Lieutenant Bowman, es- 
cort commander, and Captain Arnold, is still 
before us. 

The general train formed a complete circle, 
with headquarters wagons in the center. By 
every fire were groups bending forward with 
outstretched hands to gather a little vital warmth. 
Hopeless of supper, most of the women and 
children closed themselves up in their wagons, 
and from each little stove-pipe the white smoke 
told all night how hopefully they were struggling 
to worry it through. Children were crying of 
cold, and men were multiplying expletives. 
Drivers left their teams, and began to avow that 
they " never would drive another rod until it was 
warmer." All at once the colonel and a party of 
officers approached our wagon and knocked. 
The door partly opened, and we know how it 
must have looked as a tin cup suddenly gleaming 
by the camp-fire was quickly delivered, and its 
recipient hastened to a blaze to imbibe its con- 
tents while yet unfrozen. Then another and an- 
other went out in the same careful way, and the 
door slammed again. Next, with the same cau- 



COLD COMFORT. 231 

tion, were passed forth bread, with pieces of the 
last turkey of Fort Phil Kearney, which, having 
been chopped with the hatchet, had also been 
softened over the fire, after the coffee had been 
concocted. As the door opened, we suppose the 
view must have been about as follows : In the 
foreground, a lady sitting upon a pile of wood, 
with feet to the stove, though these were cov- 
ered with high bufi'alo boots, her head enveloped 
m a beaver hood, her form wrapped in linsey- 
woolsey and buffalo skins, and her hands stirring 
something like turkey knobs and bread chunks 
over the stove. In the background, in a perfect 
nest of wolf skins and beaver, two boys with 
caps, boots, and coats trimmed with the same 
material, and pushing themselves as close to that 
little sheet-iron arrangement as safety and culi- 
nary duties would permit; on the right and left 
a saber, shotgun, rifle, and revolver, with pend- 
ant pails and cooking utensils; at the extreme 
end, a thermometer, worn out and desolate. 

The iron itself seemed jealous of doing any 
radiation whatever, and some dry pine wood 
which had been brought with us burned out so 
quickly, and lost so much courage and efficiency 
by constant replenishing, that it really was not 
the fault of the stove, for it could not possibly 
be heated throuo-h between times. It never was red 
hot^ and its very top would neither thaw nor toast 
bread, unless when a kettle let down within had 



232 ABSAEAKA. 

contact with the flame that struggled to do its 
best. 

Lieutenant "Wands, with indomitable tact and 
energy, was everywhere, between the necessary 
warnings, encouraging drivers, cheering up sol- 
diers, keeping himself alive, and doing good 
generally. Everybody had some adventure. 
Mules got mad and broke loose, dashing just 
where they pleased, as if bound to keep up cir- 
culation by constant exercise. 

Sometimes a party would be seen coming with 
a great log, struggling through snow nearly 
waist deep, and now and then some desperate 
character would throw himself down, determined 
to have a sleep if he froze to death. This was 
of course stopped, and with chattering teeth and 
aching limbs and benumbed feet, general stamp- 
ing was resorted to, to keep circulation busy 
after the manner of the mules. 

Mrs. Wands and Mrs. Grummond had the 
same school of practice in keeping up fires, and 
little Bobby Wands had the same ambition to 
burn his bufialo boots as other little boys we 
know of. 

The convenient window in the wagon door, 
when the frost was scraped off, was a capital 
place for study of human nature under adverse 
circumstances; and it is morally certain that 
any one of those wagons, in the exact condition 
as then seen, would have been worth to P. T. 



FORTY BELOW ZERO! 233 

Barnum the restorative equivalent of his loss in 
the great fire. 

At last the sentry called "one o'clock," and 
all through camp was reapted, " Good ! it's one 
o'clock !" Some were for having reveille sounded 
at once; but guide Bailey, v^ho had tried the 
ascent out of the bottom to the summit, east- 
ward, found that no exit could be had until day- 
light. It was no doubt a lovely place for In- 
dians, if they had been on that bluff, but they 
were not; and but for the shelter of the hill no 
living creature could have withstood the ex- 
posure. 

From one o'clock to three, each hour was 
called, and at three the thermometer gave out 
entirely. The mercury settled in the bulb, froze 
itself stiff, and treated that sheet-iron stove with 
outrageous contempt. 

Forty below zero ! and the night dragged its 
hours so slowly ! By four o'clock patience gave 
out also. Do or die was the impulse of all, and 
the slow work of getting frozen hands to put on 
frozen harness began, or rather such a thing was 
ordered to be done. Whether the teamsters 
thought the bugle summons was the thawing 
out of an old call, as once happened in the ex- 
perience of the celebrated traveler Baron Mun- 
chausen, or they were too nearly frozen to ap- 
preciate their import, is not certain; but call 
after call failed to get them from their tires, 
20* 



234 ABSARAKA. 

until a verbal order, concise and to the point, 
promised all to be left behind, without wagon or 
rations, that were not ready to start punctually 
at six. 

With the dawn came the report of the sad work 
of the night. Assistant Surgeon Hines had the 
fingers of both hands frozen, and they were 
already quite black; while many teamsters and 
nearly half of the escort were more or less 
frozen, some of them requiring amputations as 
soon as we reached Fort Reno. 

With great difiiculty, by the assistance of 
those comparatively uninjured, and the exercise 
of the positive authority of the officers, the train 
was at last ready. From the bottom land there 
was a sharp rise of nearly sixty feet to the bluff, 
and the first teams that tried it, even after the 
drifts had been shoveled away, repeatedly fell 
for want of foothold, and back came loaded 
wagons, dragging the kicking, tangled mules 
with them. Details of men took charge of the 
wheels, whips on either side, and ropes ahead, 
gave additional impulse; and in three hours the 
entire train had successfully passed the first six- 
teenth of a mile out of twenty-six to be made to 
Reno. 

Just as the last wagons were buried in a deep 
cut, half a mile from the river, the alarm of 
"Indians" was given. A messenger came and 
reported that the rear was attacked. Teama 



ARRIVAL AT FORT RENO. 235 

were put to the gallop, the train was closed up, 
half frozen men in the wagons took their arms, 
and Lieutenant "Wands, with a mounted party, 
dashed back to bring up the rear, and ascertain 
the facts. All proved a false alarm ; but an 
hour was lost. 

Fortunately the day was still and clear. The 
glare of the sun was at times blinding; but the 
goggles, which on the plains are used both 
against snow-blindness and dust, enabled all to 
get along tolerably well. Bufi'alo kept us com- 
pany until within a few miles of Reno. Mes- 
sengers were sent on in advance, and at dusk 
we safely passed its gates, and received at the 
hands of Captain Proctor, Adjutant Kirtland, 
and other officers, not only quarters, but all 
creature comforts for the whole party. Such 
was the first sixty-five miles march returning 
from Absaraka. Such were three days of our 
second winter on the plains. If we claim no 
special credit for endurance, and have never 
questioned the necessity of such a march at such 
a season, certainly, like good wives, we followed 
wherever led, and we do not envy any ofiicer's 
wife, of however long experience, her claim to 
have had a harder trip after such a summer. 
Perhaps some have. Ours was ample for us. 

It is now like a dream, when it comes to mind, 
that nearly one-half of more than fifty demon- 
strations of hostile Indians in the Mountain Dis- 



236 ABSARAKA. 

trict were under tlie very eyes of the ladies of 
tlie garrison and their children. The lesson is 
not forgotten, as we no less recall the Mercy that 
spared us. Nor does a single sentiment of com- 
plaint or reflection upon the Indians, the weather, 
or anybody else, have its place in our recollec- 
tions of the past. It was our impulse and duty 
to go, and we went. No regrets are entertained ; 
but sometimes it seems that we should have had 
more enjoyment and quiet had there been more 
men alous:, and that the Indians would have 
treated larger numbers with greater respect; 
and sometimes it seems very strange that that 
trip to Fort Caspar, just then, was such a matter 
of life or death to the nation, as to make it a 
question of life or death to us. 



FORT RENO TO FORT CASPAR. 237 



CHAPTER XXVIII. 

FORT RENO TO FORT CASPAR — THENCE TO THE UNITED STATES 
— COURTESIES OF THE ROUTE — VISIT OF DIGNITARIES, MILI- 
TARY, CIVIL, AND INDIAN, AT M'PHERSON — MORE CHANGES. 

Kearly three days were spent at Reno chang- 
ing the infantry escort and providing for those 
who suffered. Lieutenant Jacobs, son of Dr. 
Jacobs, an old friend, at our birthplace, Danville, 
Kentucky, was its comroander. 

Our days' marches were forced, as far as snow 
would permit, and were — 1st, Dry Fork of the 
Cheyenne ; 2d, "Wind River ; 3d, Brown Springs, 
four miles east of the South Fork of the Chey- 
enne; 4th, the North Platte, near mouth of Sage 
Creek; 5th, Deer Creek Station, burned by In- 
dians in 1865; and 6th, to Caspar. Indians had 
kept out of sight, and the headquarters of the 
18th were again approaching a home. Lieuten- 
ant Wands, guide Bailey, and others rode for- 
ward, to give notice of our speedy arrival ; when, 
all at once, we found our ambulance closed in by 
others, and upon looking out discovered the whole 
train on a trot, in column of six wagons front, 
and thus moving all in mass. The quick passing 
of an orderly was all that had been noticed, and 
without the sound of a bugle or other warning 



238 ABSARAKA. 

we found ourselves preparing for Indians, only 
six miles from Caspar. A party of red men had 
passed between the train and those who with 
Lieutenant Wands had gone in advance, and 
galloping close up to the telegraph of&ce,hadrun 
off the stock of the horses just after the officers 
had dismounted at the fort. 

The colonel, who was riding along a ridge some- 
what in advance, recognized a mounted party 
crossing the Platte to be Indians, closed up the 
train and moved on ; but pursuit was hopeless, 
as the Indians had seen the escort turn the hill 
in full view, and were nearly across the Platte 
three miles distant when discovered. 

Soon we were met by Brevet Major Norris, a 
friend of old times, with his company of the 
2d Cavalry, and returned with him to post, 
where he had already anticipated our wants. 
Here also Brevet Major Morris, Captain Free- 
man and wife, and Lieutenant Carpenter, all old 
officers of the 18th, co-mpeted in their welcomes, 
with other officers previously unknown, to us all. 
Here also, to our great delight, we met Mrs. 
Potter and her husband, the new adjutant of the 
regiment, who, after long service as acting as- 
sistant adjutant-general during the war, and as 
commandant of the District of Utah, while 
colonel of the 6th U. S. Volunteers, had been 
appointed to the 18th Infantry and at once placed 
on the staff. Mrs. Potter and little Carroll had 



AGAIN ON THE WAY. 239 

just arrived from Laramie upon advices of change 
of headquarters. 

The first thing done was to disencumber our- 
selves of blankets and furs. The next, was to 
open our eyes as Lieutenant Wands inquired 
where most would we prefer to go rather than 
remain at Caspar, the most barren and insignifi- 
cant post on the plains. The apparent joke as 
to preference was earnest of a welcome fact ; for 
sure enough. General Augur, upon assuming 
command at Omaha, had changed the head- 
quarters station to McPherson, and thus we at 
once began to prepare ourselves to double our 
track to Sage Creek and extend our winter's 
march over the path of 1866, and within ninety- 
seven miles of old Kearney. Orders had mis- 
carried, or the trip to Caspar would have been 
spared us. 

The next day Captain Kellogg of the 18th, with 
his most estimable and lovely wife, arrived, and 
the associations of olden times were agreeably 
renewed. 

Good-bys quickly followed, and with Brevet 
Major Morris of the 18th in charge of the new 
escort we were again on the way. The second 
day we reached the iTorth Platte again, where 
Lieutenant Jacobs, who had now to return to 
Reno, bade his farewell, leaving pleasant memo- 
ries of his courtesies as a gentleman and efii- 
ciency in charge of the escort. 



240 ABSARAKA. 

Before stopping, on the sixtli day of February, 
the colonel had the misfortune to be accidentally 
shot while riding rapidly to close up the train, 
by the discharge of his revolver, which had been 
badly repaired at Caspar, the ball entering the 
scarpal space, grazing both femoral artery and 
sciatic nerve, following the bone around to the 
outside of the limb, where it lodged. Instead of 
returning to Caspar, he ordered the train crowded 
forward to Laramie, and at noon of Saturday, the 
ninth of February, the corral was formed in the 
Laramie River bottom near the post. 

The whole-hearted Mr. Bullock threw open 
his house, and, with Surgeon Shell, heaped upon 
the party that remained for twelve days with the 
colonel every comfort and attention that home 
itself could have furnished. The second day 
heavy snow fell, and the last of headquarters 
did not reach Fort McPherson until March 2d) 
although Adjutant Potter and Quartermaster 
Wands, with their families and part of the bag- 
gage, were sent a few days in advance. The trip 
from Laramie was without escort, none being at- 
tainable, although there had been an outrage 
perpetrated but a few days before between the 
post and Fort Mitchell; still, no danger was ap- 
prehended. The ride of fifty-three miles to the 
latter post was made in one day; and two or 
three days of rest passed delightfully, as Captain 
Hughes of the 18th, and Assistant Surgeon Cun- 



THE PLATTE CROSSED ON THE ICE. 241 

ningham, nephew of Lieutenant-General Cun- 
ningham of the British army, were our excellent 
and willing entertainers. They had given the 
same cordial greeting to the advance train, and 
thus Reno, Caspar, and Mitchell had alike kept 
up that old army hospitality which was once its 
pride and is the essential and redeeming feature 
of its isolated social life. 

Scott's Bluffs, Fortification Rocks, Chimney 
Rock, and Court-house Rock, had a different 
language as they rose before us, cold and snow- 
clad; but even winter could impart no more 
gloom to their barren features; and the same 
cedars peeped through the snow that had dotted 
the sterile sides and canons in the heat of 
summer. 

Captain Neil, Dr. Latham, Mr. Adams and 
wife, and young Janney, of Columbus, Ohio, were 
still at Sedgwick, but otherwise few old friends 
were met. Brevet Lieutenant- Colonel Dodge 
of the 30th Infantry, which was in camp across 
the river, and Lieutenant Bennett also called. 
The sight of a full regiment reminded us how 
constantly General Wessels and the upper garri- 
sons were watching daily for their arrival, and 
how long we had lived in the same expectancy. 

The Platte was crossed on the ice; but it 
would hardl}^ have been the fair thing to have 
passed it without recognition, so our ambulance 
broke through a few times, and three or four 

1 



242 ABSARAKA. 

little scares were undergone for old acquaintance 
sake. 

From Fort Sedgwick to Fort McPherson the 
drifting sands of summer had been overshadowed 
by the deep and drifting snows of winter; but 
with Valentine and Baker and Morrow to yield 
their best for our physical necessities, the journey 
soon came to an end. 

We had been to Absaraka and back again ! 
All phases of life, all eccentricities of climate 
and temperature, all grades of exposure and dan- 
ger, and intercourse with all styles of human 
nature had been experienced or encountered. 

Fort McPherson became home for a time. 
Here were some reminders of old times, as the 
spring of 1867 brought Indian depredations to 
the very vicinity. Here, too, were Indian coun- 
cils, Indian visits, and Indian promises. Here, 
too, the Special Indian Commission spent a 
month in seeking interviews with the Ogillallas 
and Brule Sioux of the Republican, and taking 
the testimony of Colonel Carrington as to the 
facts concerning Fetterman's massacre. 

Here, too, a court of inquiry met to take tes- 
timony, and we had the pleasure of again meet- 
ing Captains Haymond and Phisterer, who left 
Fort Phil Kearney, August Ist, 1866, and had 
been summoned from Pittsburg and New York 
as witnesses respecting the aftair of December 
21st following their departure. 



FORT Mcpherson. 243 

Here, also, were visits from Generals Sherman, 
Augur, and Custar; and here, also. Spotted Tail, 
Standing Elk, Swift Bear, Two Strike, Pawnee 
Killer, The Whistler, Long Bull, The Man that 
walks under the Ground, Joe Smith, Sharp E'ose, 
and The White Antelope had talks, and gave 
pledges of friendship. 

Here, also, the courtesy of Brevet Lieutenant- 
Colonel Mizner, of the 2d Cavalry, and his wife, 
and the officers of his command, and the sis- 
terly welcome of Mrs. Potter made our arrival 
pleasant and our stay delightful, crowning with 
something like the amenities of old-fashion times 
in the States, our return from Absaraka, Home 
of the Crows. 

But changes still occurred! Mr. Wands had 
been transferred to the 36th Infantry, and with his 
family soon returned westward again. Lieutenant 
Brent succeeded him as regimental quartermaster. 
Colonel Mizner took his turn to visit the Indian 
country farthei west, and his accomplished wife 
anticipated our own trip eastward a few weeks. 
As at the outset so at the close of our trip across 
the plains and back again, the same kind Provi- 
dence guided and guarded our footsteps, and 
more than ever brought home to the soul the 
sweet assurance of his presence 

"Wherever we wander, 
Wherever we roam. 



244 aBSARAKA. 



CHAPTER XXIX. 



IN MEMOBIAM. 



The dead of 1866, in the occupation of Absa.- 
raka, were those who were worthy. Officers and 
men alike had done duty well, and the majority 
had an honorable record before they engaged a 
new enemy in a new country. 

Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel William J. Fet- 
TERMAN, son of Captain George Fetterman, de- 
ceased, an old array officer, was born in garrison, 
and was instinct with the ambition of a soldier. 

He was appointed a lieutenant in the 18th 
United States Infantry in May, 1861, and joined 
the regimental headquarters almost immedi- 
ately. In the School of Instruction for officers, 
organized by the colonel of the regiment in July, 
1861, he was ambitious and proficient, and in his 
duties as recruiting officer in Ohio realized sub- 
stantial success, while, no less, commanding 
esteem by his refinement, gentlemanly manners, 
and adaptation to social life. 

After he accompanied the regiment to the 
field, and when the changes incident to the war 
had placed the field officers of the regiment on 



IN MEMORIAM. 245 

detached duty, as generals of volunteers, Captain 
Fetterman commanded the detachment, and 
earned the reputation of being a brave soldier. 

His return to the regiment in November, 18C6, 
had been sought, and no less looked for with 
glad anticipation, as officers were so few, and 
his social and professional character alike made 
him a favorite. 

As the senior officer serving with the 2d Bat- 
talion, just taking the new style of the 27th In- 
fantry, it was naturally expected that he would 
take command of it whenever the colonel should 
join the 1st Battalion, which was to retain the 
old number, but had its companies on the lower 
route. 

That he was impatient because Indians were 
not summarily punished, and permitted this feel- 
ing and contempt of the enemy to drive him to 
hopeless ruin, where a simple deference to the 
orders and known policy of his commander, and 
still higher authority would have brought no loss 
of life whatever, is matter of history ; yet, such 
was the esteem entertained for him by his colonel 
and many friends, that as the grave received his 
remains, and the battle-field evinced the vigor of 
his desperate defense, no bitter reflections min- 
gle with the necessity of rendering equal justice 
to the living. 

In the prime of manhood and the pride of a 
noble spirit, he reached forth for laurels that 
21* 



246 ABSARAKA. 

were beyond his reach ; and with all the support 
that human energy and quick haste could fur- 
nish, the error could not be retrieved, and his brief 
Indian campaign and life closed together, when 
he had just reached his new field of labor, inex- 
perienced in its methods and contingencies, and 
incurring the saddest penalty for neglect of the 
experience of others. 

In life he was a gentleman. In death he was 
mourned and honored. 

Captain Frederick H. Brown, enlisted in the 
18th Infantry at Columbus, Ohio, was at once 
appointed a sergeant at regimental headquarters, 
and then quartermaster sergeant. Among the 
first appointments from the ranks, under the 
then existing law requiring the colonel to fill the 
vacancies of second lieutenant, Mr. Brown was 
second. He was almost immediately appointed 
regimental quartermaster and commissary, as 
his antecedent experience in the commission 
business at Toledo had peculiarly fitted him for 
such duty. This oflice, in the field and out of it, 
he filled until promoted captain, late in 1866, 
when he received orders to join his company at 
Fort Laramie. 

He had become so attached to the country 
about Fort Philip Kearney, and so enthused by 
his purpose to take the scalp of "Red Cloud," 
that Indian skirmishing fastened itself upon his 



IN MEMORIAM. 241 

nature with the hold of some constitutional dis- 
ease. 

With it all he felt a deep sense of neglect that 
the flood of brevets which rolled over the regi- 
ment omitted his name; and when one officer 
was breveted for services in the Atlanta cam- 
paign, although, during the whole period, that 
officer was at the Korth, and others had honors 
for similar erroneously designated services, he 
became impatient, eager, and reckless. 

His intimacy in the family of the writer brought 
forth frequent sketches of his history and disap- 
pointments ; and while he could cheerfully ac- 
cept and reason upon the circumstances of the 
command, and intellectually recognize the im- 
possibility of doing more than was being done 
to punish the savages, his restless spirit would 
hardly let him fill up the measure of his neces- 
sary dut}', so set was his purpose to do some 
service that would command the recognition of 
his six years' of connection with the 18th In- 
fantry. 

On the night before his death, already ad- 
verted to, when he called, equipped for imme- 
diate duty, and at a time of the evening when 
there was no show for service, he was peculiarly 
earnest in his regret that he must leave without 
*' Red Cloud's " scalp. He asked for the colonel, 
and said " he wished they would hurry up rein- 
forcements. He was going to have one more 



248 ABSARAKA. 

fight if he had to work night and day to finish 
his papers." He adverted to the colonel's re- 
fusal to permit himself and Captain Fetterman 
to go to Tongue River valley on a trip with the 
mounted men, and said "he knew it was impos- 
sible, but he just felt that he could kill a dozen 
himself." 

Those who knew Captain Brown, or, as all the 
officers styled him, "Fred," know how he over- 
flowed with genial humor, and interested him- 
self in whatever imparted social life to the 
march, or garrison life. His relation of an In- 
dian skirmish on the 23d of September was fre- 
quent; and just before his death he made up its 
history, which he said " showed one good fight 
he had with the rascals." 

That his impulses led Brevet Lieutenant-Col- 
onel Fetterman to disobey orders on the 21st of 
December, at the sacrifice of the whole detach- 
ment, is not questioned ; and yet we have no 
heart for blame when the strength of his friend- 
ship, his pride in his regiment, his disappoint- 
ment as to honorable mention, and his brave but 
false estimate of the spirit of the Indian, chal- 
lenge so much of our regard as memory brings 
him back to us, as when we parted but a few 
hours before he left earth's scenes forever. He 
said " he would always keep a shot for himself;" 
and doubtless thereby saved himself from tor- 
ture. 



IN MEMORIAM. 249 

Lieutenant George W. Grummond, who fell 
in the same memorable slaughter, had achieved 
success in the war with the rebellion as captain 
and field officer of Michigan volunteers, and was 
understood to have been breveted brigadier- 
general of volunteers before he ceased his con- 
nection with the Army of the Cumberland. Our 
narrative has shown how narrow was his escape 
on the 6th of December; and the sketch of Fet- 
terman's massacre shows how closely he obeyed 
his orders to remain with Captain Fetterman. 
His ambition prompted him to volunteer to ac- 
company that party, and the fact that his remains 
were found with those of Sergeant Lang and a 
few others, more than a quarter of a mile in ad- 
vance of the other dead, indicates that he either 
was covering the retreat or was disabled and 
killed in a gallant defense. He had a soldier's 
spirit, and in social relations was genial and al- 
ready esteemed by all. He alone, of the fallen, 
left a widow to mourn his loss, and his remains 
returned with her to Tennessee, where they re- 
ceived their final burial. 



250 ABSABAKA. 



CHAPTER XXX. 

OMAHA TO VIRGINIA CITY, MONTANA. 

The foregoing narrative has given the distances 
for the best day-by-day marches, and such facts as 
to wood, grass, and w^ater as are of practical 
value along the route from the Union Pacific 
Railroad to Fort Philip Kearney. 

The westward-bound traveler will find at 
Omaha such extensive supplies of merchandise 
and outfit, at the establishments of W. R. King 
& Co., Jewett & Ely, John M. McCormick & Co., 
Hurfords, Lehmen & Co., Stephens and Wilcox, 
C. F. Catlin, S. & A. B. Saunders, and fifty other 
grocery, hardware, dry goods, and stationery 
houses, that he will find himself not a whit at 
loss if he has reached that city without much 
antecedent outlay ; while the Union Pacific Rail- 
road regularly transports its burdens beyond the 
first spur of the Rocky Mountains, passing en 
route the wagon departure at Horse Shoe Creek, 
and again at Cheyenne, afibrding a comparatively 
easy route to Laramie and points bej^ond. 

To those who travel with their own wagons 
and substance, this narrative gives many hints ; 



OMAHA TO VIRGINIA CITY. 251 

but the whole line from Leavenworth, or Ne- 
braska City, on the south side of the Platte, has 
been temporarily impaired by the Indian en- 
croachments, the westward tide of travel, and 
the natural laws of that advance. With no af- 
fectation of scientilic research more than to col- 
lect such botanical, floral, and geological speci- 
mens as the circumstances of the march would 
permit and a natural taste for such study would 
prompt, our information from competent sources, 
in company, sets forth Southern and Middle Ne- 
braska as full of promise. The beautiful farm- 
ing lands back of Omaha will find their contest- 
ing claimants; while salt, building material, and 
indications of coal show that the State is capable 
of expansion and self-support with little extrinsic 
aid. 

Beyond Nebraska, and apart from the accom- 
modations of the Union Pacific Railroad, the ox 
and mule teams still hold supremacy, and for 
their benefit some further information is given. 

The trip of Major James Bridger and guide 
Henry Williams in 1866, who were sent forward 
by Colonel Carrington to visit the authorities of 
Montana and survey the route, or shorten it and 
open a new route, furnishes many facts additional 
to those contained in the report of Colonel Saw- 
yer, and their notes, somewhat abridged, are by 
permission freely used for our present purpose, 
with the confidence that this will always be an 



252 ABSARAKA. 

avenue for travel, though interrupted in the set- 
tlement of Indian questions for a time. 

The following statement closely approximates 
the odometer measurement of General Ilazen in 
1866, and while this is twenty miles less than 
Colonel Sawyer's route, the course of travel 
adopted by Major Bridger confirms his opinion 
that nearly thirty miles more can be saved as 
soon as the government or emigration can safely 
operate and improve the road : 

-Tort Philip Kearney to Fort C. F. Smith 91 miles. 

Fort C. F. Smith to Clarke's Fork 63 " 

Clarke's Fork to Yellowstone Ferry 90 " 

Yellowstone Ferry to Bozcman City 51 " 

Bozeman City to Virginia City 70 " 

Total 365 miles. 

The first distance is divisible as follows: 

Fort Philip Kearney to Peno Creek Branch 5 miles. 

To North Bank of Peno Creek, with timber, grass, 

and water 7 " 

To Second Crossing of Peno Creek, with same sup- 
plies 6 " 

To Croosing of Goose Creek, with same supplies... 4 " 
To Brown's Fork of Tongue Kiver, with same sup- 
plies 13 " 

To East Fork of Little Horn Kiver, with same sup- 
plies 17 " 

To Grass Lodge Creek, with same supplies 15 " 

To Eotten Grass Creek, with same supplies 16 " 

To Fort C. F. Smith, Bridger's Cut-off. 8 " 

Total 91 miles 



OMAHA TO VIRGINIA CITY. 253 

Between Tongue River and Little Horn River 
eight forks are crossed, the largest of which, 
" Colonel Kinney's Fork," is quite a stream of 
clear water, with nearly two feet of depth in the 
autumn. 

Between Little Horn and Big Horn Rivers are 
nine small streams of constant water. 

The Big Horn River is nearly three hundred 
and thirty yards wide, with from three to six feet 
of water, and is crossed by a substantial ferry. 
Li 1866 Kirkendall's train lost a wagonmaster by 
attempting to ford it ; but it can be forded, with 
some little risk to stock and merchandise, at a 
low stage of water. It is unsafe for strangers, 
and the ferry is indispensable to general travel. 

Fort C. F. Smith, on the Big Horn River, was 
built by Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel N. C. Kin- 
ney, Captain of the 18th Infantry in 1866, and 
suffered less from Indian adventures on account 
of the vicinity of the friendly Crow Indians, and 
because it was west of the main hunting-ground 
of the Arrapahoes, Cheyennes, and Sioux. It 
is the last residence of white men until the trav- 
eler reaches Bozeman City. 

Associated with Captain Kinney in the build- 
ing of Fort C. F. Smith, and with wonderful 
vigor and patience resisting the effect of wounds 
and apprehended heart disease, should be men- 
tioned Brevet Major Thomas B. Burrows. His 
22 



254 ABSARAKA. 

father is well known as the veteran friend of edu- 
cation in Pennsylvania. 

The second distance, before referred to, is di- 
visible as follows : 

From Fori C. F. Smith to Dubois Creek, a fork of 

Beauvais Fork of Big Horn Kivcr, N.W. by N. ... 10 miles. 

This stream is about fifteen feet wide. Koad good 
except the crossings of two small creeks, and 
distant from the mountains about seven miles. 
The timber is ash and box elder. 
To North Fork of Dubois Creek, N.W. by N 10 miles. 

Koad crosses small creeks and ravines, and is quite 
bad. The stream is narrow, and eight miles 
from the mountains. Grass good, and timber 
for fuel. 
To South Fork of Prior's River, N.W 8 miles. 

Koad passes one long canon, cutting the divide 
between Big Horn and Kocky Kanges, crossing 
several creeks, and in places quite rough. Grass 
good. 
To Ice Water Spring, N."W. by N 15 miles. 

At four miles is water in a small branch. At five 
miles farther is Millard's Spring, with good 
grass and water. This spring rises and flows 
from a high, level prairie, four miles from the 
base of the mountains, forming a branch of 
Prior's River, three feet wide and twelve inches 
deep. At six miles farther comes Ice Water 
Spring, with good grass, but no timber, although 
at Prior's River, two miles beyond, the timber 
is abundant. Road is in many places quite 
rocky. Ice Water Springs rise from a mound 
in the prairie, supplying four small streams 
which unite in a channel six feet wide and three 
feet deep, flowing with great rapidity. 



aMARA TO VIRGINIA CITY. 255 

To Spring Creek, W.N.W 8 miles. 

Koad crosses Prior Eiver and its four miles ot' 
beautiful valley, thence up the valley of Spring 
Creek, or North Fork of Prior's Pviver. Here 
are many steep bluffs until the road attains the 
summit of the divide between Prior's Eiver and 
Clark's Fork, Grass excellent. Only sufficient 
timber for fuel. 
To Clark's Fork, nearly W 12 miles. 

The road is good, and all prairie except two dry 
creek-crossings, which are not decidedly bad. 
Clark's Fork is here nearly one hundred yards 
wide, with a rich valley and abundance of grass 

and timber. • 

Total 63 miles. 

The third distance is divisible as follows: 

To Rocky Fork 7 miles. 

This stream is forty-five yards wide, about three 
feet deep, with good ford. Luxuriant timber 
and grass. Ten miles from the mountains. 

To Berdan's CreeA— Branch of Rocky Fork 12 miles. 

Kooky Fork is crossed twice. Good camping- 
grounds are found every three miles. Grass 
and timber abundant. 

To South Fork of Rosebud 10 miles. 

Three miles up Berdan's Creek. Eoad rough 
until the main divide is reached, between this 
creek and the South Fork of Eosebud. Stream 
about fifteen feet wide and two feet deep, 
abounding in beaver dams. Grass good; but 
only sufficient timber for fuel. Eoad runs six 
miles from mountains. 

To Rosebud River Camp 8 miles. 

Down South Fork of Eosebud one mile; thence 
crossing a divide of three miles. Eosebud is 
nearly twenty-five yards wide and two and one- 



256 ABSARAKA. 

half feet deep. Cottonwood and willow timber 
is plentiful, and grass good. Thence down 
Kosebud four miles to best camp. About ten 
miles from the mountains. 

To Stillwater, W.S.W 6 miles. 

Koad crosses the main Eosebud and follows up 
Stillwater Fork of Eosebud. Eoad good, tim- 
ber heiivy, and grass good. Stream is about 
sixty-five yards wide, three feet deep, and quite 
a rocky ford. About six miles from the mount- 
ains. 

To Emmil's Fork 18 miles. 

The road runs W.S.W., to North Fork of the 
Stillwater. Grass and timber very heavy, and 
camping-grounds every three miles. One di- 
vide is crossed before reaching Emmil's Fork, 
which here empties into the Yellowstone Eiver. 
Emmil's Fork, named from the massacre of 
Emmil's party, in 1822, is about twenty feet 
wide and eighteen inches deep. The Yellow- 
stone is here about one hundred and twenty 
yards wide and from three to five feet deep. 
The valley is from six to fifteen miles wide, 
and timber is very heavy. 

To Big Boulder Creek 17 miles. 

Eight miles up Yellowstone valley, crossing 
"Lower Cross Creek" at five miles, and "Up- 
per or Big Cross Creek " three miles beyond. 
Eoad, grass, and timber good ; thence the road 
is over level prairie nine miles, with abundance 
of grass and timber. 

To Yellowstone Ferry 12 miles. 

Eoad good. Timber is mostly on the north bank. 
The ferry is diagonally across the river, of 

nearly two hundred and seventy-five yards. 

Total 90 miles. 



OMAHA TO VIRGINIA CITY. 257 

Tlie fourth distance is divisible as follows: 

Yellowstone Ferry to Warm Spring, S.W 4| miles. 

Up tlie Yellowstone Kiver, after crossing, four 
and a half miles. Eoad here bears west toward 
the hills, becoming very heavy, and crossing a 
succession of small creeks and ravines. 

To Twenty-five Yai^d River lO^miles. 

Southwest five miles across the ridge to the Yel- 
lowstone. Eoad difficult, crossing sidling hills. 
Up the valley two miles to foot of "Big Hill." 
Across the ridge, with better road, 3^ miles. 
This river derives its name from its width. 
Plenty of young timber, and grass good. 

To Beaver or Pass Creek 17 miles. 

Eoad runs S.W. by S. Eoad for ten miles very 
good, until leaving the river and entering the 
pass called Flat Head or Clarke's Pass. The 
last eight miles crosses a number of spring 
creeks, which flow from the snow range. No 
timber in this pass, except small pine and aspen. 

To Cold Spring Creek 10 miles. 

Up Beaver or Pass Creek. Eoad very rough. 
Grass good. Timber in abundance, of small 
varieties of pine and aspen. 

To Head-waters, Cold Spring Creek 5 miles. 

Eoad crosses the divide to the east Branch of Gal- 
latin Eiver. Timber largely destroyed by fire 
several years ago. 

To Bozeman City 4 miles. 

Down the East Gallatin Eiver. Here is a success- 
ful flour-mill, and a small but thrifty village. 



Total 51 miles. 

The fifth distance is divisible as follows. Road 
adopted in 1866 : 

22* 



ij58 ABSARAKA. 

To Madison River 33 miles. 

Southwest to West Gallatin Eiver thirteen miles. 
Koad runs across the valley, which is twelve 
miles, and nearly all occupied by farms, with 
abundance of grass, and well watered by small 
streams from the mountains. This river is 
about one hundred and fifty yards wide, and 
from two to two and one-half feet deep, very 
swift, with a heavy growth of cottonwood tim- 
ber. Thence, southwest by south, nearly twenty 
miles across the dividing ridge to the Madison 
Eiver. Eoad good ; grass abundant ; but little 
timber near the road. 
To Meadow Creek 21 miles. 

Eoad crosses Madison Eiver. This river is nearly 
two hundred yards wide and three feet deep. 
Thence up the stream five miles, westward up a 
canon four miles, to main divide of Hot Spring 
valley. This spring boils up vigorously, and 
with temperature unpleasant to the hand. Near 
are the first quartz leads. The road is good, 
but rough. Thence south, across the divide, to 
Meadow Creek, twelve miles. 
To Virginia City — by cut-ofl". 16 miles. 

The usual road is twenty-two miles. 

Total 70 miles. 

Aggregate distances 365 miles. 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 259 



CHAPTER XXXI. 

INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS— INCIDENTS OF 18G5-7. 

The entire history of the relations between 
the United States and the Indian tribes of the 
Northwest, during the last twelve years, has 
been affected by the mistakes of 1866. The 
massacre of that year was the direct fruit of 
scant treaties and violated law, and succeeding 
bloodshed has been the natural result of efforts 
made to settle the habitation and status of the 
Indians who at that time were recognized as 
rightful occupants of Dacotah. 

The reports and documents as to this period are 
voluminous and exhaustive. During the winter 
of 1865-6 the Indians were comparatively quiet. 
During October, Generals Harney and Sanborn 
made a treaty, at the mouth of the Little Arkan- 
sas, assigning to the Cheyennes and Arrapahoes 
a new reservation, partly in southern Kansas and 
partly in the Indian Territory. This was de- 
signed to remove them from the vicinity of Colo- 
rado ; but the treaty " permitted them to reside 
upon, and range at pleasure through, the unset- 



260 ABSARAKA. 

tied portions of that part of tlie country whicli 
lay between the Arkansas and Platte Rivers," 
and which they claimed as their own. This 
treaty accomplished nearly as much for peace as 
had the presence of the large force of volunteers 
then scattered over the plains. 

The Minnesota war also ended, and the chief 
question for consideration was that of protecting 
overland travel, and securing a route for the pro- 
posed Union Pacific Railroad. 

General Curtis wrote from Fort Sully, May 
30th, 1866, that the proposed " Cheyenne and 
Black Hills" expedition had been abandoned, 
adding, " There may be some bitter complaints 
of this interference with the desire of our fron- 
tier men to spread over all parts of the Indian 
country, but justice and humanity will be ad- 
vanced by this change of orders." 
•' General Pope, whose Department included 
Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Dacotah, 
Montana, llsTebraska, Colorado, Utah, and l!^ew 
Mexico, wrote in February : " At present there 
is almost a general pacification in the Indian 
country within this Department." Of the Omaha, 
Atcheson, and Leavenworth routes, converging 
at Fort Kearney, he says, " All these are safe to 
travel, even in small parties." In treating gen- 
erally of western emigration, he uses the follow- 
ing terms : " What right under our treaties with 
Indians have we to be roaming over the whole 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 261 

mining territory, as well as the plains to the east 
of tliem, molesting the Indians, in violation of 
treaties and right, which we solemnly pledged 
ourselves to prevent? How can we exjiect the 
Indian to observe a treaty which he sees us vio- 
late every day, to his injury ? How can the Indian 
keep peace under such circumstances ? We 
promised to protect him from our people, and 
do not fulfill our promise. He is forced to pro- 
tect himself, and tempted every day by the care- 
less and irregular manner in which parties of 
whites travel through the territory, to do as the 
whites do, — seize, whenever he can, anything he 
covets. The Indian cannot keep peace, even if 
he would." 

The marching of Indian Commissioners with 
long wagon-trains of presents, the widely her- 
alded assurance that thousands of red men 
would assemble at Laramie to establish definite 
terms of permanent peace alike induced quiet 
on the border and faith in good results. The 
treaty movement was right, and the Indians 
assembled in good faith, for a conference on 
equal terms ; but that treaty did not cover the 
real issue at stake. 

Fetterman's massacre, near Fort Phil Kearney, 
at once aroused the entire Indian population 
from the Arkansas line to the upper Missouri, 
and precipitated into hostility toward the whites, 
many bands or tribes which, at most, would 



262 ABSARAKA. 

only have robbed in small parties but for the 
stimulus of that carnage. All military reports 
of that period recognize this fact. It does not 
seem to have been understood that the Laramie 
treaty of 1866 aifected and sought to reach In- 
dians who were accustomed to roam south, as 
well as north, and that every tribe, there repre- 
sented, had some members who did not assent to 
its terms, and who, in fact, sympathized with 
Red Cloud when he withdrew the young men 
from the conference to go upon the war-path. 
It is equally important to realize that Chiefs are 
simply " braves," who control by virtue of their 
superior merit and will ; that the union of bands 
in single tribes is very loose, unless against a 
common foe, and that they are to be caught, or 
approached and tamed, separately. Because one 
band is either hostile or friendly is not the assur- 
ance of the temper of the next band in order. 
Hence war, except against Indians armed for 
war, or committed to war, only develops more 
war, distrust, and failure. There was more of 
truth than passion in the words of Sitting Bull 
in 1877 : " WAm you find a white man who will not 
lie, you may come hack to me." And there was truth 
in the statement of General Sherman, " that every 
locality wanted a force at its command equal to 
resist the Indians of the whole ISTorthwest," It 
IS equally true that ranchemen, squatters, half- 
breeds, and trappers were reckless in robbing 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 263 

red men, but howled for protection if the Indian 
took his own property back. 

The period covered by the Narrative, in this 
volume, will be still better understood by a fuller 
statement of the facts which immediately pre- 
ceded and followed the expedition of May, 1866. 
/The writer took command of old Fort Kearney, 
Nebraska, late in 1865, and of the East Sub-Dis- 
trict of Nebraska, in February, 1866. The 18th 
U. S. Infantry was the only Regular Army regi- 
ment which could be placed on the frontier. One 
battalion was sent on the Fort Riley route, and the 
third was on recruiting service. The 7th Iowa, 
10th Ohio, 12th Missouri, 1st Nebraska, and 2d 
West Virginia Regiments were clamorous " to 
return to their homes before corn-planting." 
The 6th and 7th U. S. Volunteers were still on 
the plains ; but as they had been paroled during 
the civil war, for temporary service on the fron- 
tier, they demanded their discharge when the 
civil war ended. The Union Pacific Railroad was 
still a future enterprise, and the border States, 
having in mind the " Report of Colonel Saw- 
yer's Trip in 1864-5," were urgent that a wagon- 
road should be immediately laid out around the 
Big Horn Range to Virginia City^ ' By reference 
to page 43 of the Narrative, it will be seen that 
the Niobrara route was also to be kept open and 
a fort built at foot of the Cheyenne Black Hills. 
Along the Platte River there was comparative 



264 ABSARAKA. 

quiet. The Plum Creek and Julesburg raids, 
and Chivington's more frightful slaughter of de- 
fenseless Indians were still fresh in mind, but 
hostile operations were confined to the move- 
ments of small bands, who ran off stock, im- 
posed upon a ranche, or robbed a defenseless 
train. During the winter of 1865-6 and the 
ensuing spring, the small force, then disposable, 
was sufiicient to prevent incursions and guard 
the emigrant trains which almost daily passed 
westward. 

Under direction of the government a careful 
survey of the Platte River was made in March, 
1866, with view to a proposed bridge-crossing 
for the Union Pacific Railroad at Port Kearney. 
Scouting-parties visited the Republican and its 
forks, and brought back an actual detailed ac- 
count of the timber which could be used for 
bridge-piles, without encountering an Indian or 
crossing a fresh trail. 

A large body of Pawnees, of various bands, 
headed by Pe-ta-la-sha-ra (Chowee) visited the 
post, left their squaws upon the islands of the 
Platte, to tan beaver-skins in peace, and made a 
protracted buffalo-hunt on the Republican, with- 
out contact with hostile Sioux or Cheyennes. In 
view of past raids, and the proposed discharge 
of so many volunteers, it was deemed necessary 
to supplement the small force on the overland 
stage-routes, by calling Pawnees, fast foes of the 




LA-HIC-TA-PA-LA-SHA. 
Pipe Chief — Pawnee. 



Page 264. 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 265 

Sioux, into the United States service. A bat- 
talion of four companies, under Major North, was 
mustered in, and notwithstanding the hidicrous 
tableau presented, when four hundred Indians 
sat erect in McClelland saddles, clothed in full 
uniform, cap and ostrich feather included, and 
armed with carbine, revolver, hatchet, knife, etc., 
it did look warlike, because the men could easily 
strip, for real work, and they would fight Sioux 
as a matter of luxury. 

The winter passed quietly. The proposed 
Montana expedition was organized, and fulfilled 
its destiny, as detailed in Mrs. Carrington's Nar- 
rative ; and the careful reader of its quiet para- 
graphs will find many suggestions which, in the 
light of subsequent history, reflect much light 
upon the merits of that enterprise. 
/ It is a matter of history that neither General 
Pope, who ordered the expedition, nor General 
Sherman, who believed that it would ensure a 
safe emigrant route to Montana, had been fur- 
nished with, or knew of, the old treaties as to 
that particular country which it would violate ; 
neither had it been clearly announced that the 
success of the proposed Laramie conference 
would hinge upon a cheerful modification, or the 
faithful execution of those treaties. In urging 
the retention of the belt between the Arkansas 
and Platte Pivers for public transit. General 
Sherman expressly made the condition, "that it 
'2;'. 



266 ABSARAKA. 

did not violate some one of tlie solemn treaties 
made with those Indians, who are very captions, 
and claim to the very letter the execution on our 
part of those treaties, the obligations of which 
they know so perfectly." 

It must also be borne in mind that the Conner 
expedition of 1865, and the first establishment 
of the Powder River post. Fort Reno, was a 
committal of the government to the occupation 
of territory which had yet to be acquired by 
the United States; and that this involved the 
necessity of increasing the military force upon 
the Plains beyond the demands of ordinary 
times. 

It was true that small bodies of emigrants occa- 
sionally suffered, but no less true that judiciously 
organized trains passed safely, and that no wide- 
spread combination of tribes was realized until 
the forced occupation of the Big Horn country 
introduced a costly and protracted war. The 
Indian was assailed in his last covert, on the 
only soil where game remained, and it was 
understood by him to be, as it was in fact, his 
final struggle for independence and self-support, 
after the manner of his fathers. 

With this glance at the circumstances under 
which the military occupation of that country 
was initiated, there is to be associated the state 
of affairs which existed along the Platte, and 
thence southward, across the Republican, during 




PE-TA-LA-SHA-RA. 
Pawnee Chief — Choicee Band. 



Page 265. 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 2G7 

the Spring and summer of 1867, shortly after the 
massacre. 

The Union Pacific Raih'oad was in progress of 
construction at the rate of from two to three 
miles a day, and its protection became the chief 
employment of troops. Kegimental headquarters 
of the 18th Infantry were at Fort McPherson, 
with a garrison of Battery C, 3d U. S. Artillery, 
and Company D, 2d TJ. S. Cavalry. Small parties 
of Indians would steal stock or annoy working- 
parties, but the chief active hostility was along 
the posts of the lower line, and in the valley of 
the Republican. This valley was hunted over 
indiscriminately by Cheyennes and Sioux, and 
equally by Indians who were friendly and those 
who were hostile to the whites. The policy of 
the Post Commander, as enjoined by Generals 
Sherman and Augur, was to persuade all who had 
in good faith signed the treaty at Laramie to go 
north of the Platte, so that hostile Indians could 
be dealt with by themselves. 

On page 243 of the Narrative of this volume, 
the visits of Generals Sherman, Augur, and Cus- 
ter, and of many noted Indian chiefs, are briefly 
noticed. General Custer, in " Life on the Plains," 
and in " The Galaxy" magazine for May and 
June, 1872, also mentions his halt near Fort 
McPherson. Much light is cast upon subsequent 
military movements by reference to the details 
of conferences held with Indians at that post, 



268 ABSARAKA. 

during May and June, 1867, including one at 
which General Custer was present. 

" Spotted Tail," " Standing Elk," and other 
Brule and Ogallalla chiefs, came with a large 
number of braves and their families to give 
assurance of the good faith with which they 
kept the pledges made at Laramie, and to ac- 
cept a home and support. These were assigned 
to Brady's Island, near the post, as a rendezvous, 
and General Augur promptly sent a month's ra- 
tions from Omaha, in addition to those furnished 
from the fort. The name of Spotted Tail has 
become so celebrated for his loyalty to obliga- 
tion and his exceptional respect for his Indian 
wife, that their portraits are given, as well as 
some incidents connected with their visit. He 
was taken upon an engine at Is^orth Platte sta- 
tion, then just established, and was Mdiisked by 
his camp of wondering people at a speed of 
nearly thirty miles an hour, as if some iron 
monster was running away ^dth their chief. He 
looked at a watch, held in the hand of the ac- 
companying otRccr, then at tlie driving-wheels, 
then made the motion of shooting an arrow, 
and then relaxed into his commonplace accept- 
ance of the facts. At one interview, when pipes 
had done all possible soothing, and all were ready 
to talk, powder was asked for. When told that 
the Great Chief at St. Louis must first consent, 
he counted the estimated days of delay with 




Spotted Tail and Ma Squaio.— Brule Sioux. Page ; 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON lllE PLAINS. 269 

gruuts of unqualified disfavor. The quick use 
of the telegraph in his presence, and a quick 
answer, restored his kind demeanor, and taught 
him a little of the white man's craft. On one 
occasion a thousand rations were issued, and 
in an hour the sugar had disappeared. Around 
the pile of bacon, flour, beans and hominy, a 
circle of nearly fifty old women danced, and 
their song of thanksgiving, as with shrill screams 
and distorted faces they whirled and leaped 
and swung their bodies, was more as one might 
imagine the rejoicings of fiends over some 
fresh soul lost, than as the expression of grate- 
ful hearts ; and the horrid shrieks could only 
have been more thrilling if they had been a 
formal prelude to the scalping of their honored 
host. 

Spotted Tail manifested profound respect for 
his wife. When, with others of the band, they 
were sufiiering extremely for certain medical ap- 
plications, which was attended to by Post Sur- 
geon Davis, they delicately declined to enter the 
house of the Post Commander, but, as he passed 
the piazza and recognized the mistress of the 
house, whom he met near Laramie, he turned to 
his squaw, who walked behind him, and hoth 
joined in a bow of that recognition. 

The settlement of " Spotted Tail" at Brady's 
Island left open the adjustment of troubles with 
the Cheyennes and Sioux, who still lingered in the 
23* 



270 ABSARAKA. 

valley of the Republican and points still farther 
south. 

ISTine commissioners had been sent west to in- 
vestigate the Indian matter, particularly the Fet- 
terman Massacre (see Appendix), and they were 
daily expected to take Colonel Carrington's tes- 
timony. General Augur, Department Com- 
mander, directed that officer, then commanding 
post, to send messengers to " Pawnee-Killer," 
" The Whistler," and other chiefs, and tell them 
that honorable terms of friendship would be con- 
ceded if they would come to a conference. These 
Indians came at different times and made short 
visits. Each visit, however, brought representa- 
tive men, and in spite of the monotony of Indian 
interviews, three are put on record, so that those 
who read the history of succeeding operations 
may recognize the chiefs and judge of their con- 
duct. 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 271 



CHAPTER XXXII. 

INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS — INCIDENTS OF 1867 — 
INDIAN CONFERENCES. 

On the 19tli of April the Cheyenne village, on 
Pawnee Fork, in Western Kansas, had been de- 
stroyed by General Hancock's command, the 
Indian women and old men having abandoned 
it on the near approach of the troops. Pawnee 
Killer was among the chiefs who visited General 
Hancock's camp, April 14th, when an effort was 
made to induce them to send for their families. 
" Most of them," says General Custer, " exhibit- 
ing unmistakable signs of gratification at this 
apparently peaceful termination of our encoun- 
ter." A fruitless pursuit of these Indians, both 
Sioux and Cheyennes, followed this failure to 
brino- back their families and the destruction of 
their town. A long succession of raids upon 
stage stations had aroused that entire region to 
demand the punishment of the offenders. These 
events were not understood at Fort McPherson 
at the time of the visits now referred to, neither 
were the antecedents of " Pawnee Killer" spe- 
cially alluded to in the conference with him, at 



272 ABSARAKA. 

■which General Custer was present. (These con- 
ferences are transcribed literally, from the notes 
of the interviews.) 

May 21st, 1867. "The Whistlbr," Ogallalla Sioux, 
came in with a party. Question by Colonel Carrington : 

" Did you get my letter ? Where were you ?" 

Answer. "I was at the Arkansas. I think good, and no 
wrong. . I come to shake hands and say what is good. I and 
"White Antelope made treaty at Laramie, and swore to do 
nothing against the whites. We have a paper, and travel by 
it." 

Colonel C. " Will you show me the paper ?" 

(The paper endorses " The Whistler," " Bull Fly," and 
" Yellow Jacket.") 

Colonel C. " Where is your home now ?" 

Answer. " This side of the Arkansas. That is where I havo 
been since the whites said they would not go through my 
country with soldiers." 

Colonel C. " How long were you on the Arkansas ?" 

Answer. "Twenty-seven sleeps, and we came to White-Man's 
Fork." 

Colonel C. " How many lodges?" 

Answer. " One hundred." 

Colonel C. " Who has fought you? The white chief be- 
lieves that you were good at Laramie, and is glad you did not 
hurt the whites. Who has hurt you since the treaty, whites 
or Indians?" 

Interpreter. "He says there is no one who gave him 
anything back ; he went to shake hands with whites near 
Fort Lyon, other side of Island Wood Creek. When they 
went there, they did not throw away their lodges ; were satis- 
fied ; women got scared ; threw away (left) their lodges. If 
they wanted to fight, would get it. Came here for protection. 
Interpreter told them, there, the country did not belong to 
them." 

" Sharp Nose" and " Brave Heart" (Brule Sioux). 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 273 

Interpreter. " He says, no big chief. You are chief; ho 
thinks you head chief." 

Colonel C. "I am big chief here ; have been twelve moons 
up to Big Horn." 

Interpreter. " He says he has nothing bad for you. He 
is a small man, but has something to say." 

Colonel C. " Tell him to speak." 

Answer. "Was at Laramie. The chiefs there gave him 
that paper. Whenever he sees an officer he wishes to shake 
hands." 

Colonel C. " Ask him where they want to stop. Did the 
Cheyennes drive them away?" 

Answer. " He is afraid of Cheyennes," 

Colonel C. " Does he want to live near white man or hunt?" 

Answer. " The other side of Turkey Creek ; plenty of buf- 
falo; Solomon Fork." 

Colonel C. " Tell him if they want to stay, chief and 
braves will see them to-morrow, and give them things to 
eat." 

Answer. "That paper I have, I will use." 

Colonel C. "Tell him it's good." 

Answer. " He has that paper" (and shakes hands). 

Colonel C. " We tell all white men to shake hands with 
Indians with such papers." 

Answer. "On this side of Arkansas white men thick as 
grass — shook hands. They told him to come near and put 
lodges near." (This reference seems to be to Gen. Hancock's 
march.) " Women and young men got scared, — threw away 
all their things. Come for protection, — three hundred lodges. 
He and a few come and ask for something, lodges, etc. All 
the rest are coming. Give him some kettles and pans." 

Colonel C. " When will the rest be here ?" 

Answer. " All the horses are poor, — some-time, — wish to 
hear what you think. He comes from this side the Ar- 
kansas ; nothing to eat for twenty days, — they rest at 
White-Man's Fork." 

Colonel C. " Any Brules ?" 

Answer. " No." 



274 ABSARAKA. 

Colonel C. " How many ?" 

Answer. " Three hundred and sixty lodges. He has been on 
this road. Never thought wrong of whites. Some Indians 
fight. He wants to take care of his band, — wants peace, — 
wants you to give them some white men to go with them, in 
case of trouble to tell them where to g >." 

Colonel C. " Tell him I will give him some kettles, pans, 
etc., and things to eat, and any lodges I can spare, and send 
word to Great Father for what I have not, to send them what 
he thinks best." 

Answer. " He says he don't want to fight. Government 
promised to help them. Wants wagons and goods and men 
to go with them, — means nothing bad. Howl" (Shakes 
hands.) " You have made his heart glad, — he is satisfied." 

Colonel C. " Have they been to Beauvais's?" (A ranche 
up the road.) 

Answer. " No, sir." 

Long Bull (Oh-than-ca-pas-ka). (Credentials presented, 
signed by Gen. Curtis, Fort Sully, October 28th, 1865.) " He 
loves his people." 

Colonel C. " Tell him it is very good. The white chief 
will hear him." 

Answer. "They" (others) "have talked, — thinks the same 
as others. Big head chief, at Moran's." (A ranche up the 
road.) 

Colonel C. " Who are the chiefs left behind?" 

Ansvjer. " Slow Dog is back at village, and Man that 
has been wounded with a small wound in the body [Stnall 
Wound). He says they are the main men there. He is an old 
man ; goes by the men that are there, — some are fighting men. 
He comes for something good. He has been on Solomon's 
Fork. Never received any goods from the government, — 
wants them now, — needs them. He heard there was a big 
man of the government here. He came to see as quick as he 
could. He has made robes and traded them, — now is poor." 

Colonel C. " Tell him that the white men from the Great 
Father are gone to Laramie ; will be kind to him till they come 
back. Where are their ponies?" 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 275 

Answer. " At Mr. Boujier's. " 

Colonel C. " Tell them when our talk is over, I will give 
them some hay and something to eat. Ask them if they want 
to talk to-morrow." (No answer ; but shake hands.) 

The "White Antelope" (Brule). "He is no head man, 
he is a soldier ; he has come with his lodge. His heart is good. 
He has been to war with other Indians ; tries to keep them from 
war with the whites. He heard Jrom all Indians there were no 
soldiers to go between Plum Creek and SolomoH^s Fork. These 
Indians are jpoor.''^ (Very likely that White Antelope had 
some idea as to the treaty of 1865.) 

Colonel C. "Do they want to live in one place, or to go 
and hunt?" 

Answer. " They want thirty days' rations, for all ; want to 
go and tell the news to their people." 

Colonel C. "When?" 

Answer. "To-day." 

Colonel C. " What they want now is food for the present 
party?" 

Answer. "Yes, sir." 

Colonel C. " I am willing to give them two white men." 

Answer. "He wants white men with Indian women, to 
teach them the ways of the whites ; wants to go back." 

Colonel C. "Do all wish to go this evening?" (No an- 
swer.) 

Colonel C. " How many have come ?" 

Answer. " One hundred and one in all ; nine lodges have 
come in, the rest are back. About three hundred and fifty 
are at mouth of Black Wood ; it empties in Republican, near 
White-Man's Fork." 

Colonel C. " Tell them, since they came, I sent to Laramie 
over the wire, to General Sully, Big Man of the Commission. 
He is coming here ; has left Laramie ; there are six of them." 

Colonel C. " How many miles is their village oif the main 
road?" 

Answer. " Sixty-five miles." 

The following letter was given to " The Whistler," and, as 
appears hereafter, he made its contents known to other chiefs : 



276 ABSARAKA. 

"Fort McPherson, Nebraska, May 21st, 1867 
" To The Whistler, who came to see me, and to all thb 
Ogallalla Sioux south of the Platte River. 

" Come and see me if you want peace. I will feed you, and 
give you protection and provisions for your people ; and while 
you are at peace the whites will protect and take care of you. 
Come to Moran's House. 

" Henry B. Carrington, 

"Colonel 18th U. S. Infantry, 
" Brevet Brigadier-General U. S. A. 
" Tougon is here." (A half-breed interpreter.) 

(Moran's Eanche was particularly named, so that collisions 
might be avoided and none come at random to the road.) 

It is to be noticed that the statement of these 
Indians as to their contact with General Han- 
cock's column, so far as it goes, is in harmony 
with the actual facts. 

On the 2d of June, a messenger reported that 
another party of Indians had arrived at Jack 
Morrow's ranche, nine miles west of the Post, 
and wished an interview. They were directed to 
come to the fort. This they declined to do, and 
the orderly reported that some of Morrow's best 
horses, which had been grazing on the prairie, 
had disappeared. A part of Battery C, 3d Artil- 
lery, under Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Ransom, 
was at once sent with wagons, and with orders to 
escort or bring them to the fort, forthwith, and 
that they must send runners for the missing 
horses. This they did, and then came to the 
fort. 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 277 

The Man that Walks Alone on the Grottnd (Ogal- 
lalla Sioux) first spoke. 

Question by Col. Carrington. — " Did you come from the 
Republican?" 

Answer. " No ; we came from Beaver Creek." 

Colonel C. "Where is The Whistler?" 

Answer. " He is at Beaver Creek." 

Colonel C. " Did he get the rations that I sent him?" 

Answer. " He did." 

Colonel C. " Did he say he was coming here again soon ?" 

Answer. " He did ; and said that he and his band would 
go north of the Platte River, where the Brules went." 

Colonel C. " I wish to tell you that the white soldiers in 
large numbers are coming here, and driving the hostile Chey- 
ennes this way. I want friendly Indians to keep on the north 
side of the Platte River." 

Answer, " I and my men want to cross the river." 

(Orders had been received to furnish Lieutenant-Colonel 
Custer's detachment of the 7th Cavalry with rations if they 
touched Fort McPherson during a proposed scout.) 

Colonel C. (to interpreter). " Ask him who stole the stock 
this morning. The white chief is very angry about it, and I 
want the horses brought back." 

Answer. " He says that he got in with Whistler at Beaver 
Creek, and they were talking of coming on the road, and some 
of them did come, and the Cheyennes run ofl' the horses, and 
that he, The Man that Walks Alone on the Ground, in- 
duced the Cheyennes to return the stock, which was done, 
except two horses, and Joe Smith (present at the conference) 
promised to return them or give two mules in their place." 

Colonel C. "Did The Man that Walks Alone on the 
Ground or Joe Smith suppose that we were going to fight 
them?" 

Answer. "They did." 

Colonel C. " When I first sent out word to have them 
come in why did they not come?" 

Answer by interpreter. " He says that Whistler told them 
that the white chief had a good heart, and told all the band to 
24 



278 ABSAllAKA. 

come in to the Post, and when they got ready to come, they 
were told that the white soldiers would fight them and were 
then afraid to come." 

Colonel C. " Ask him if they would like to go north of 
the No7-th Platte, to the Sand Hills, and be taken care of and 
fed by the government?" 

(Question, in reply. " Are you an officer?" 

Colonel C. " Yes ; I am a big chief, and command all the 
country around here." 

Interpreter. "He says he has a faniilj', and wishes to 
go with them and his band north of the Noi-th Platte, pro- 
vided the government will feed them and take care of them. 
He, and his father's fathers before him, had lived and hunted 
on this river, and he thinks that he has the best right to it." 

Colonel C. "Tell him that 1 control this country here, and 
I will furnish means to take care of them if they go across the 
river and be at peace with the whites, and not steal their stock " 

Answer. " We want it to be as it used to be, — at peace with 
the whites." 

Colonel 0. " Ask him if the Cheyennes (southern) have 
not a bad heart." 

Answer. "Some of them have a very bad heart, and say 
they won't kill the whites, but will steal their stock, and that 
there are a great many now about Plum Creek and about Jules- 
burg, stealing stock. The Cheyenne Chief, Black Kettle, don't 
want to fight. He is now on the other side of Fort Lyons." 

Colonel C. " Is The Whistler a good Indian?" 

Answer. " Yes." 

Colonel C. " How man}"- days would it take to come here, 
if I send them across the river?" 

Answer. " He says that their horses are very poor. He will 
go back and see his people, and move as soon as he can." 
(These pledges were afterwards redeemed by some of the band.) 

Colonel C. " Tell him that I got a dispatch from the 
Great Chief. General Sherman is coming here next Tuesday. 
Would he like to remain and have a talk with him ?" 

Answer. "Joe Smith will remain, but he and the others 
will go back to their village." 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 270 

Colonel C. " Tell them if they want to be friends to the 
whites they must let me know where they are, so that I can 
keep the soldiers away, and not disturb them." 

Answer. " He says he has sent some of his men back to the 
village this day to bring (take) good news back." 

Colonel C. " Where is their village?" 

Answer. " It is thirty-five miles southwest of White-Man's 
Fork, on Black Wood." 

Colonel C. " Tell them, if they want to be at peace with 
the white man, they must keep away from the roads, and not 
interfere with trains. The white chief has a good heart and 
straight tongue, and will take care of his friends ; but his ene- 
mies he will punish." 

Interpreter. "Joseph Smith says, he came here last 
summer; he didn't want to fight the whites, — that he is a sol- 
dier at the head of the Ogallallas. The Man that Walks 
Alone on the Ground says, that he would like to have two 
white men to go along to the village and help him to move." 

Colonel C. " Tell him he can have them, and ask him 
who he would like to have." 

Answer. " He would like to have these two." (Pointing to 
the interpreters.) 

Colonel C. " Do they want to go back to Morrow's to- 
night ?'■ 

Answer. " They do ; and, they say, will remain until to- 
morrow, and Joe Smith will remain until Tuesday, when he 
will come here and see General Sherman. They say they are 
aow ready to leave, and bid you good-night." 

A week later, General Custer's column, — six 
companies of tlie 7th United States Cavalry, — 
arrived, fresh from the pursuit of the Cheyennes, 
whose village was burned in April. Meanwhile 
a state of alarm prevailed at the ranches on the 
south side of the Platte, and constant demands 
were made for guard-details, far beyond the 



280 ABSARAKA. 

capacity of the garrison to furnish. Ranchenien 
would not keep their stock in corral, but left 
them on herd, still insisting upon protection for 
the stock. Details were refused. 

On the 10th of June, after the burial of Major 
Cooper, of the 7th Cavalry, General Custer 
moved his camp up the Platte, near Morrow's, 
where hay was procurable, and Pawnee Killer, 
who had come in on invitation, was taken to the 
camp for a conference. The following is the 
official record of that conference as taken down 
at the time : 

" Interview between Generals Carringion, Custer, and Indian 
Chiefs Pawnee Killer and five (5) of his tribe [Ogallalla 
Sioux), at General Custer's camp, near Morrow's ranche, 
June 13th, 1867." 

Question by Gekeral Carrington : " Ask them what they 
came in for." 

Answer by Pawnee Killer : " Two parties of Indians had 
been to the road, and went back to the village and told them 
lies, and now they came to see for themselves." 

General Carrington. " Ask him if the Indian has a 
good heart ; if he has seen Whistler since he (Whistler) saw 
the white chief." (General Carrington.) 

Answer. "Yes." 

Question. " Did he (Whistler) tell him that the white chief 
had a good heart ?" 

Answer. " He says that Whistler told them in the village 
to come to the road in a month and a half, and said that he 
would get tents, when they come, — from the white chief." 
(This is a correct report of the promise made to Whistler in 
the interview already quoted.) 

General C. "Oh, yes. I did tell Whistler that I would 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 281 

give them provisions and tents if they would go north of the 
Platte. Where is The Man that Stands Alone on the 
Ground ?" 

Answer. " He says that he is at the village." 

General C. " Did he say the whites treated him kindly ?" 

Answer. " He says they all talk alike ; the same as Whistler." 

General C. " The white chief would be at peace with all 
Indians if they would come in." 

Answer. " He says they all talk alike, that come from you." 

General C. " Did you know that Spotted Tail, Swift Bear, 
Two Strike, and Standing Elk were here with the white 
chief, and that I gave them, for one moon, to eat?" (Rations 
for a month.) 

Answer. " He says he knows it." 

General C. "Ask him if the Ogallallas would like to go 
to the north of the Platte, to be away from the hostile In- 
dians." 

Answer. " He thinks that all the big men should talk the 
same way." 

Question. " How long since he left the village?" 

Answer. "Two days and nights. He says you talk well 
and good." 

Question. " Is it good (honest) to him ?" 

Ajiswer. " He says he thinks good, if he can, — the same as 
you think. Some of the Indians tell him stories, and he came 
in to see for himself." 

Question. " Ask him if The Whistler is coming here 
again." 

Answer. "He says he is now after something to make lodges, 
as they have no butfalo now." 

Question. " Ask him if all of the Indians south of the 
Platte want to come here and be taken care of by the whites." 

Answer. " He says he thinks they all want to come inside of 
thirty or forty days ; his horses are very poor." 

Question. " Ask him if they will keep from the road until 

they come here. All those who come directly to me I will 

give tents and feed them ; but they must keep away from the 

road, as the Great Father at Washington directs me to pro- 

24* 



282 ABSARAKA. 

vide for them if they come here, and keep away from the 
roads." 

Answer. "He says he is afraid to go with other people; 
there is (are) no Cheyennes with his people. They split eight or 
ten days ago ; he says he is a fool, or has been a fool, but now 
will do better. He says Spotted Tail shook hands with the 
Great Father (at Laramie), but he. Pawnee Killer, did not, 
and is sorry for it now. The whites hunt for gold, and I am 
the same. I hunt for food and shelter, and if he moves over 
the river will you let him move back when the fighting is 
over?" 

General C. " Tell him that the Big Men from Wash- 
ington said, Give the Ogallallas all the country from the 
Platte to the Kepublican ; and since the Cheyennes are hostile 
there, and the whites can't tell the hostile from the friendly 
Indians, they want all friendly Indians to stay north of the 
Platte." 

Answer. " He says that is good." 

General C. " I know they can't kill buifalo while fighting 
is going on, but I will feed them, north of the Platte; and 
when all Indians are peaceable, then we will let them hunt 
south of the Platte, so they don't go on the road." 

Answer. " He says that he heard about being sent over the 
river, and that is the reason why he came in to know for him- 
self, whether he can come back again after the fighting is 
over." 

GENERAL' C. "Will he go north of the Platte River and 
stay there until we give him permission to go south again?" 

Answer. " He says he will." 

Question. " Don't he think he can come in sooner than forty 
days? I want him to come as soon as he can." 

Answer. " He thinks he may come sooner, but wants time 
enough, fearing he may be delayed." 

Question. " Ask him are there any Indians on White-Man's 
Fork." 

Answer. " He says there are no Indians now on White- 
Man's Fork. They are on the South Fork of the Beaver 
Creek." 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 283 

Question. " How many lodges, and how many fighting 
men?" 

Answer. " He says they have sixty fighting men." 

(Question. " Ask him who are the soldiers and chiefs who 
don't want to come ; as Joe Smith and Whistler told me that 
some did not want to come." 

Answer. " He says they all want to come and shake hands 
with the white oflicers and he friendly. He says his heart is 
good, and what his grandfather told him he still remembers, — 
to have an honest heart ; and he says you don't think wrong, 
and want to shake hands with him, and as he has now parted 
with the Cheyennes he wants to he friendly, and all his tribe, 
with the whites, as the Great Father told him to be good." 

Gej^eral C. " Tell him he talks good ; he has a good heart, 
like we have toward them. Ask him if they have much meat 
or food." 

Answer. " He says they have been surrounded with meat, 
they moved where the buffalo are." 

General C. " Tell him that all these soldiers are this white 
chief's men (General Custer's), and he has three times as many 
on the Smoky Hill" (route). 

(Question by General Custer. "Tell him if he hadn't 
come in yesterday, I would have gone on this morning. I 
heard that some friendly Indians were coming in, and I told 
my men that if I met Indians the first day from here I would 
be friendly with them, because they had General Carrington's 
papers ; and all Indians we met after one day's march from 
here, we would make war with them, because war is my busi- 
ness, and your coming in may be the means of establishing 
peace between them and the whites. I am going to stay here 
one day more, so as I can send word to another big chief, who 
is at Sedgwick (General Sherman), He told me to come here 
and kill all Indians I met, and you came here yesterday and 
said you want peace, and I believe you. I sent that word to 
the big chief at Sedgwick. I have told the big chief that I 
believe that the Indian's heart is good, and that we will let the 
Sioux alone if they be friendly with us, but will make war 
with the Cheyennes. I would like to have you stay here till 



284 AnSARAKA. 

to-morrow evening ; I expect to hear from the big chief that 
is at Sedgwick. This chief (General Carrington) will give 
you provisions for your party, enough to take you back. That 
is all I want to say now." 

A7iswer. " I am in a hurry ; I want to go back and tell my 
people the good news. I am the man to do it ; I will tell my 
soldiers all to cross the river." 

General Carrington. "I will cross them all over tho 
river as soon as they come, and it shall cost them nothing." 
Answer. " That's all I want to know." 
(The expense of crossing by Morrow's boat was proverb- 
ially terrifying to white men and Indians alike.) 

General C. " They must come in near Morrow's ranche, 
and not beyond." 

Answer. " I want to go back immediately to my people, in 
order to hurry them to move, and would like to have some 
rations to take back ; and as the whites are going to fight the 
Cheyennes, I want to tell my people to go north of the Platte. 
I want to go back to tell them to move, and tell them all I 
know, as you have told me, about going to war with the Chey- 
ennes." 

Question. " How will you carry rations we shall give you ? 
"We have no fresh meat, but will give you coffee, sugar, and 
hard bread." 

Answer. " We want some tobacco." 

General Custer. " "We have none of that. If they wait 
till to-morrow we could give them some." 

Interpreter. " They want a white man to meet them at 
Ked "Willow, when they are coming back. They will come 
down the Eepublican, and then to Morrow's ranche." 

General Custer, for self and General Carrington. " Tell 
them that we both have a good heart and true ; that Indians 
conae on the road and kill people and steal stock. We will 
kill all we catch hereafter on this road. The wire was not 
working, and that was the reason I did not move to-day. I 
was waiting to hear from the big chief at Sedgwick. There 
is a great deal of white soldiers coming, but we want our 
friends to move before they come." 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 285 

Answer. "He says he wants you to keep them off till he 
can cross the river." 

General Carrington. " Tell him that all Indians who 
come on the Toad are by us considered hostile, and all who 
wish to be friendly must not come on the road." 

Atiswer. " He says he quit the Cheyennes, and is now going 
to fight them." 

General C. " Tell him that we don't want them to fight the 
Cheyennes. We have men enough to do that ourselves. All we 
want of them is to go north of the river, out of the way of the 
Cheyennes. Ask him if he is pleased with the interview." 

Answer. " He says yes ; he shook hands with you to sig- 
nify it." 

These tliree independent interviews showed 
that the messages sent out had been correctly 
reported. 

Pawnee Killer sat upon a camp-lounge cushion, 
underneath which General Custer had left one 
of his revolvers. The chief showed evident im- 
patience toward the close of the interview, and 
after loading the ponies with bacon, etc., all 
they could carry, the party rode briskly away. 
The revolver was missed when too late for 
pursuit. 

The following line from General Custer, that 
evening, gives his impression of the interview : 

June 12th (13th), 6 p.m. 
My Dear General, — I have telegraphed General Sherman 
the result of the talk with Pawnee Killer and the other Sioux, 
who came in to-day in response to your invitation. I believe 
the Sioux are sincere in their desire for peace, and that if we 
exercise good judgment, we can separate the Sioux from the 
Cheyennes, and make friends of the former. I hope you will 



286 ABSARAKA. 

succeed in keeping the band together. (Then followed a 
friendly invitation for the ladies of the post to visit the camp 
that evening.) 

(Signed) Truly your friend, 

Geo. a. Custer, 
Brevet Major-General. 

Responsive to telegram as to the unreasonable 
demands of the settlers, came the following prac- 
tical message from General Sherman : 

Sedgwick, July 13th, 1867. 
General Carrington, Commanding. — Despatch of to-day 
received. I don't understand about the thirty friendly 
mounted Sioux reported by General Custer camped on 
Medicine Lodge Creek. Have word sent to them, if it is 
south of the Platte. Tell them they must join Spotted Tail 
immediately, else they will be confounded with the hostile 
Sioux. Your letter, asking me to come to McPherson with 
Senatorial party, only just reached me to-day. If the people 
along the south side of the Platte are stampeded, I can't help 
it. General Custer reported no trail from Fort Hays to Mc- 
Pherson. I hope his present movement will denounce the 
party that have been making so much noise along the Platte. 
We are not going to guard every ranche on the south side, and 
the people may start for the north side if they won't fight for 
their possession. 

W. T. Sherman, 
Lieutenant-General U. S. A. 

General Sherman stopped at the camp of Gen- 
eral Custer, and at the Post, and the cavalry 
column moved south. Within ten days Pawnee 
Killer had a collision with General Custer's 
column, and protracted hostilities followed. In 
a subsequent engagement with tlie same force, 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 287 

Black Kettle, an unquestionably bad Indian, was 
killed, and tbe 7th Cavalry, under their gallant 
lieutenant-colonel, became as distinguished for 
brisk work in the saddle, as the 2d Cavalry had 
been, for its almost ubiquitous service wherever 
required in the Department of the Platte. 

The operations on the lower line at once sus- 
pended the anticipated removal, northward, of 
some of the Indians ; but still quite a number 
eventually joined Spotted Tail, and thus kept 
clear of a collision with the opposing forces. In 
view of large supplies and the small force on the 
line of the Platte, it is not improbable that the 
Indians left the Smoky Hill route, where troops 
were in force, to strike where there was less 
power to resist. In that case the sweep of Gen- 
eral Custer, making McPherson a supply station, 
where he could also confer with General Sherman, 
defeated the plan. 

Of their final action, General Augur, com- 
manding Department of the Platte, under date 
of Oct. 23d, 1869, thus writes: "More than a 
year ago, when ' Spotted Tail' went to the reser- 
vation set apart for all these bands, certain of 
them, under the leadership of ' Pawnee Killer,' 
' The Whistler,' ' Tall Bull,' ' Little Wound,' and 
others, refused to go. "When the Cheyennes 
were driven south, last winter (1867-8), ' Tall 
Bull,' and a few other prominent head soldiers, 
joined their bands on the Republican, and it is 



288 ABSARAKA. 

their straggling bands that have committed all 
the depredations in northern Kansas and south- 
ern ITebraska during the past year. The In- 
dians north of the Platte gave comparatively 
little trouble." 

In July, Lieutenant-Colonel Wessells took com- 
mand of the 18th Infantry during the colonel's 
invalid absence. In 1868-9, headquarters were 
at Fort Sedgwick, but the Indian operations were 
confined to a few attempts to annoy details guard- 
ing work on the line of the Union Pacific Rail- 
road, and substantial order prevailed along the 
Platte. 

During this period "William Blackmore, Esq., 
of London, to whom the Government has for- 
mally extended its acknowledgments for his in- 
valuable photograph negatives of Indian chiefs, 
visited Fort Sedgwick in company with Major 
Bridges, of the 1st Regiment of (British) Foot 
Guards. Mr. Blackmore's contributions to 
American archaeological inquiry have been sup- 
plemented by the endowment and equipment of 
a museum at Salisbury, England, where is stowed 
a collection of Indian relics of war and the chase 
elsewhere unsurpassed. It is not out of place for 
an American oflicer to honor his labors, and tes- 
tify of the generosity with which that gentleman, 
during 1875, both at London and Salisbury, re- 
paid his host of Fort Sedgwick the attentions 
there accorded. 




RED CLODD AND ME. BLACKMORK, OF LONDON. 



Page 288. 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 289 



CHAPTER XXXIII. 

INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS — INCIDENTS, 1867-1873. 

The principal events which transpired imme- 
diately after Fetterman's massacre require notice, 
in order that the long line of consequences which 
followed operations in 1866 may be traced up to 
the present time. 

The closing winter and spring, 1866-7, were 
periods of light warfare in the Big Horn and 
Tongue River valleys. In January, 1867, the 
snow had drifted to the height of the stockade, 
eight feet, and the difficulty of marching is illus- 
trated in Chapter XXV H. of the Narrative. Re- 
ports from officers who remained longer at the 
fort show, that continued storms, wind, and in- 
tense cold so crowded spring into summer, that 
active movements, even to haul fuel, were almost 
impracticable. 

Every effort to induce Red Cloud to accept 
terms of peace was answered by his demand fur 
the evacuation of the country and the demolition 
of the forts. The hostility of his band could not 
be repressed by vague assurances that the matter 
was under advisement, nor by the simple omis- 

25 



290 ABSARAKA. 

sion to reinforce tlie garrison and thorougWy 
occupy the line with troops. Failure to pursue 
and punish was regarded as acceptance of his 
victory; and the Indian could not comprehend 
how the nation had sufficient power in reserve to 
avenge the massacre, and yet could not hurry a 
force forward to do it. 

On the 20th of July, 1867, Congress author- 
ized a mixed commission of army officers and 
civilians to communicate with all hostile tribes 
and negotiate terms of permanent peace. 

In 1868 the following treaty was announced : 
" The Sioux retained the right to hunt in IS'e- 
braska, on any lands north of the !N"orth Platte, 
and on the Kepublican Fork of the Smoky 
River." Subsequently, in 1874, Congress appro- 
priated twenty-five thousand dollars to redeem 
the right to hunt in iTebraska, but it was not 
until May, 1875, that the modified terms of the 
contract were formally settled between the par- 
ties in interest. The treaty of 1868 also stipu- 
lated that " the country north of the ISTorth 
Platte, in Nebraska, and east of the summits of 
the Big Horn Mountains should be held and con- 
sidered unceded Indian territory, and that no 
white person or persons should be permitted to 
settle upon or occupy any portion of the same ; 
nor, without the consent of the Indians first had 
and obtained, should pass through the same." 
This was yielding more than the Sioux claimed 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 291 

at Laramie, in 1864, when the negotiations were 
cut short by the forcible possession of that terri- 
tory. This clause thus recognized a large tract 
of neutral territory, bounded on the south by 
Nebraska ; but this north line was still undefined, 
and involved much difiiculty, when, on its final 
establishment, it was found to cut far north of the 
previous understanding of the Indian parties to 
the treaty. 

Owing to the fact that the Union Pacific Rail- 
road was fast making Montana accessible, the 
scarcity of troops, and other immediately pru- 
dential reasons, the President, on the 2d day of 
March, 1868, ordered the Big Horn country to be 
given up. For want of ready transportation, — as 
wagons had first to be sent out for removal of 
the stores, — the movement could not be executed 
until August. Meanwhile, the ceaseless irritat- 
mg annoyances of 1866 had to be inflicted upon 
the new garrisons and new Post Commanders, 
and they realized, personally, what it was to be 
without the means of responsive punishment of 
savage enemies, to be tenants at their will, and 
to esteem it a great triumph to receive occasional 
mails and recapture portions of stolen herds. 
Some of the ofiicial reports read very like Chap- 
ter XTTI. of this Narrative, and illustrate the con- 
dition of the frontier. 

October 1st, 1867. — A dash at the mules with the hay party ; 
fourteen mules and seven horses run off. 



292 ABSARAKA. 

October 12th. — Indians attempted to capture mules belonging 
to the pinery, four and a half miles from the post. (It was 
when sent simply to succor a similar train, that Fetterman 
took an independent departure, and sacrificed himself and his 
command.) 

October 13th. — Forty-one mules run oif by Indians at Fort 
Eeno. 

October 17th. — One man killed and scalped by Indians at 
the pinery. 

October 20th. — Detachment of 2d Cavalry attacked at Crazy 
Woman's Fork. 

October 25th. — Indians twice attempted to run otf the stock 
of three trains en route from Fort Reno. 

March 12th, 1868. — Mail party from Fort Eeno attacked on 
Dry Fork of the Cheyenne. 

March 13th. — Indians captured a train between Fetterman 
and Laramie Peak saw-mill. 

March 14th. — Indians captured a mule train near Post saw- 
mill. 

March 18th. — Indians captured twenty-nine mules of saw- 
mill train, and killed one man. 

March 18th. — Indians attacked Bruce's camp, near Box 
Elder, and ran off sixty head of cattle. 

March 24th. — Eanches burned, and ranchcmen killed, be- 
tween Forts Laramie and Fetterman. 

Of the Indian operations in the Department 
of the Platte, General Augur says : " It is more 
in the nature of disconnected raids for stealing 
animals, and getting other plunder, than of a 
systematic and permanent war. The raiding 
parties have been small, and scattered along the 
various lines of communication in this Depart- 
ment." Still, on the 30th of September, 1867, 
he thus emphasizes the nature of the warfare in 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 293 

^ the Big Horn country, and the value of the line : 
c" The Montana route alone, between Laramie 
and C. F. Smith, near the Yellowstone, has 
occupied two regiments of infantry — the 18th 
and 27th — and half a regiment of cavalry, and 
they have barely maintained themselves upon it, 
and kept it open for their own supplies. The 
troops at the forts upon it have to fight almost 
daily to secure their supplies of wood and hay. 
K, therefore, these posts are now given up, it 
will be at a loss of all that has been expended 
upon them, and with almost a certainty that their 
re-establishment will be demanded in a few 
years. This route, substantially, must become 
the great highway between Colorado, Nebraska, 
and Montana. Its proximity, in its whole extent, 
to what will undoubtedly be Indian country, 
will render necessary the very posts now existing 
upon it." 

This was the condition of things, notwith- 
standing twenty-six companies were upon the 
line which eight companies had to open and 
defend in 1866 ; and it will hereafter appear that 
the extensive operations of after-years had to be 
conducted through this very region, without the 
advantage of those posts for rendezvous, rest, 
and supplies, and that new forts had to be estab- 
lished to command the same country./ 

The people at large know nothing of the trials, 
hardships, and exasperating endurances of fron- 

25* 



29-i ABSARAKA. 

tier service, at sucli periods as this Narrative and 
General Augur's report embody. They look for 
battles and victories, little knowing through what 
ordeals an officer must run the gauntlet, to save 
property, life, or honor, while conscious that if 
he do not perish, his reward must be in the sense 
of duty done. No consideration of personal com- 
fort is possible. In referring to the return of 
Colonel J. J. Reynolds to Fort Fetterman in 
March, 1876, after destruction of the camp of 
Crazy Horse on Powder River, General Sher- 
man, in his annual report for that year, writes : 
" The nights following the attack on Qrazy Horse's 
village were so cold thai the men were not allowed to 
sleep for fear of consequences. " The record of such 
a night, with the mercury 40° below zero, and 
when the use of black-snake whips alone roused 
men from overpowering lethargy, is set forth, on 
page 233, as part of the experience of an officer's 
wife on the Plains. But while the people do not 
realize the cost of such exposure, on the march 
or in the field, neither do they realize how delay 
or failure in the confirmation of favorable treaties, 
or in the appropriation of money to give them 
effect, exasperated the Indians, until the whole 
frontier became dotted with war spots, and all 
that had been done through the efforts of General 
Sherman and others, acting legitimately and 
purely as Peace Commissioners, was stripped of 
half its value. It is right that these facts should 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 295 

be placed outside of Executive Documents, and 
be recognized, so that neither the army, Indians, 
frontiersmen, the Interior Department, or Con- 
gress, shoukl carry the whole burden of so much 
bloodshed and waste. 

The Commission which organized under the 
Act of July 20th, 1867, consisted of N. G. 
Taylor, President; J, B. Henderson; W. T. 
Sherman, Lieutenant-General ; Wm. S. Har- 
ney, Brevet Major-General; John B. Sanborn; 
Alfred H. Terry, Brevet Major-General; S. F. 
Tappan; and C. C. Augur, Brevet Major-Gen- 
eral. Their report of January 7th, 1868, is a 
faithful exposition of the condition of affairs, 
and an expressive commentary upon the delay 
for funds, and the difficulties attending the em- 
ployment of so many and so changing systems 
of policy in dealing with the Indian tribes. It 
also confirms the assurance that the out-flow from 
the Laramie Treaty of 1866, and the enforced 
temporary abandonment of the Big Horn region, 
after actual possession and such terrible retribu- 
tion, embodied two principles equally dangerous 
in dealing with savages, viz. : 1st, Disregard of 
treaties, and 2d, Failure to punish wholesale 
slaughter. 

In his official report of September 26th, 1868, 
General Sheridan, then commanding the depart- 
ment of the Missouri, thus writes in respect to 
his own command : 



296 ABSARAKA. 

The motives of the Peace Commissioners were humane, but 
there was an error of judgment in making peace with the In- 
dians last fall. They should have been punished and made to 
give up the plunder captured, and which they now hold; and 
after properly submitting to the military and disgorging their 
plunder, they could have been turned over to the civil agents. 
This error has given more victims to savage ferocity. The 
present system of dealing with Indians, I think, is an error. 
There are too many fingers in the pie, too many ends to be 
subserved, and too much money to be made ; and it is the in- 
terest of the nation, and of humanity, to put an end to this 
inhuman farce. The Peace Commission, the Indian Depart- 
ment, the military, and the Indian, make a baulky team. The 
Public Treasury is depleted and innocent people plundered in 
this quadrangular arrangement, in which the treasury and the 
unarmed settlers are the greatest sufferers. 

Of the animus of the army, he makes a state- 
ment which is true, and deserving of universal 
recognition. It is this : 

I desire to say with all emphasis, what every army officer 
on the frontier will corroborate, that there is no class of men 
in this country who are so disinclined to war with the Indians 
as the army stationed among them. The army has nothing 
to gain by war with the Indians ; on the contrary, it has every- 
thing to lose. In such a war it suffers all the hardship and 
privation, exposed as it is to the charge of assassination if In- 
dians are killed, to the charge of inefficiency if they are not j 
to misrepresentation by the agents who fatten on the plunder 
of Indians, and misunderstood by worthy people at a distance 
who are deceived by these very agents. 

The year 1868 blazed with the war-fires which 
kindled in 1867. Hon. Schuyler Colfax tele- 
graphed from Denver, September 7th, 1868 : 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 297 

Hostile Indians have been striking simultaneously at iso- 
lated settlements of Colorado for a circuit of over two hundred 
miles. Men, women, and children have been scalped daily, 
and hundreds of thousands of dollars have been stolen. 

The reports of Generals Sheridan, Augur, and 
Terry are accompanied by detailed tabular state- 
ments, showing that petty raids annoyed every 
post (none excepted), from the Missouri River, 
west, to Montana, and south to Arkansas, That 
of General Sheridan of October 24th, 1868, re- 
capitulates distinct cases wherein an aggregate 
of seventy-nine white men were Idlled, and over 
five thousand head of stock had been stolen. The 
close of the year brought an effort to punish these 
outrages in that Department, even at the expense 
of a winter campaign. This was prosecuted in 
spite of deep snows, and such tempests as the 
unprotected, treeless plains alone can furnish. 
Lieutenant-Colonel A. Sully, south of the Ar- 
kansas ; Captain Graham, on the Big Sandy, 
September 15th; Major Geo. A. Forsyth, at 
Beecher's Island,* Arickaree Fork, September 

* General Custer, in "Life on the Plains," page 98, says, 
that " the Indians fought Forsyth, about seventeen to one, and 
the whole affair, until relieved by Colonel Carpenter's com- 
mand, was a wonderful exhibition of daring courage, stubborn 
bravery, and heroic endurance, under circumstances of greatest 
peril and exposure. In all probability there will never occur, 
in our future hostilities with the savage tribes of the West, a 
struggle the equal of that in which were engaged the heroic 
men who so bravely defended ' Beecher's Island.'" 



298 ABSARAKA. 

17th; Lieutenant-Colonel Bradley, with a third 
column, and Major E. A. Carr, 5th Cavalry, at 
Beaver Creek, October 18th, inflicted great loss 
upon the Kiowas and Comanches. Colonel Craw- 
ford, with the 19th Kansas, and Major A. W. 
Evans, with a portion of the 3d Cavalry, partici- 
pated in this severe campaign. On the Washita, 
November 27th, Lieutenant-Colonel Custer, with 
the 7th Cavalry, killed Black Kettle and de- 
spoiled his villages, severely punishing not only 
the Cheyennes, but also the Arrapahoes under 
Little Raven, and the Kiowas under Santana. 

During the years 1869 and 1870, the Indian 
forays were few and chiefly of little significance. 
The work of the Peace Commission began to 
bear fruit. The lives lost and the treasure ex- 
pended had passed into the cabinet of experi- 
ences, to be looked at, wondered at, and, at last, 
regarded. The Indian country had nearly re- 
sumed the peaceful status which obtained before 
the Pandora box of frontier trouble was thrown 
wide open in 1866. Much still depended upon 
the success of Red Cloud in persuading the 
bands under his influence to unite with him in 
permanent peace. During the summer of 1870, 
that chief, with Spotted Tail and others, both of 
the Ogallalla and Brule Sioux, visited Washing- 
ton and other eastern cities. On the 5th of Oc- 
tober, Red Cloud, with The Man Afraid of his 
Horses, Red Dog, American Horse, Red Leaf, 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 299 

and other Sioux, met the Commission at Fort 
Laramie. On the 7th, Dull Knife, who visited 
Fort Phil Kearney in 1866 (see page 112 of N^ar- 
rative), Gray Head, Medicine Chief, and other 
northern Cheyennes, were present. American 
Horse and Medicine Chief were hoth afterwards 
killed in battle. During the summer, the first 
hasty expedition to the Black Hills was repressed 
by General Augur, and much progress toward 
peace was realized very early in the season, by 
his prudence in placing troops just where there 
was most danger of trespass, thus forestalling 
depredations in the exposed parts of Nebraska. 

General Pope thus reviews the situation : 
" Speaking generally, there has been little 
trouble with the Indians in this Department this 
season. This result is mainly due to the fact 
that the Indians have been fed and furnished 
with nearly ever}i:hing they asked for, and by 
this means much temptation to depredate has 
been removed. In General Hancock's Depart- 
ment Major E. M. Baker destroyed a camp of 
Piegans north of Fort Benton, on the 24th of 
January, during an intensely cold period, but 
general quiet prevailed." 

In June, 1871, Red Cloud again met the Com- 
mission, and he has quite uniformly manifested 
friendship, in spite of some difilculty in restrain- 
ing the young men of his band, and in spite of 
those gradual changes which are restoring the 



300 ABSARAKA. 

Big Horn country to the control of the whites. 
On the 24th of July a raid into the Gallatin 
valley called fresh attention to the bands of 
Teton Sioux who occupied a part of the line of 
the proposed Northern Pacific Railroad. These 
were largely influenced by Sitting Bull, who 
utterly rejected all overtures from Red Cloud, in 
behalf of peace with the whites. Otherwise, 
general peace prevailed during 1871. The Board 
of Indian Commissioners thus make up the re- 
cord of the year : 

The remarkable spectacle seen this fall on the plains of 
Western Nebraska, Kansas, and Eastern Colorado, of the 
warlike tribes of the Sioux of Dacotah, Montana, and Wy- 
oming hunting peacefully for buffalo, without occasioning 
any serious alarm among the thousands of white settlers whose 
cabins skirt the border on both sides of these plains, shows 
clearly that the efforts of the friends of peace in establishing 
confidence between the white people and the Indians have 
been eminently successful. We contrast this picture with 
that presented by the same tribe when, five years ago, in con- 
sequence of our government's bad faith in violating its treaties 
with them, they were engaged in a war made memorable by 
the so-called Fort Kearney massacre, in which ninety-eight 
of our soldiers (seventy-nine) were killed in sight of the fort 
(five miles from the fort), and in the course of which many of 
the settlers lost their lives, and so many hundreds of others 
were compelled to abandon their claims and flee to the larger 
towns for safety. 

In 1872 " not a white man was killed," writes 
General Augur, " in the Department of the 
Platte." The reports of Generals Pope and 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 301 

Hancock were equally encouraging;^ Col. D. S. 
Stanley, of tlie 22d Infantry, from Fort Rice, 
and Major E. M. Baker, 2d Cavalry, from Fort 
Ellis, made expeditions to the Yellowstone dur- 
ing tke summer, to protect the surveys of the 
Northern Pacific Railroad, without substantial 
opposition. Xieutenants Eben Crosby and L. D. 
Adair were killed by Indians while in advance 
of their company, and Colonel Stanley's servant 
was killed while hunting. Major Baker advanced 
as far eastward as Pompey's Pillar, and returned, 
mistrusting the strength of his detachment. One 
sergeant was killed during his march, and three 
soldiers were wounded. 

During the year 1873 the Pawnees and Sioux 
again came into collision, and the infelicity of 
the location of the Red Cloud and Spotted Tail 
Agencies became apparent, and finally, in 1876, 
the Pawnees were removed to the Indian Terri- 
tory, and their lands were purchased by the 
United States. Meanwhile, the Red Cloud 
Agency, which had been in Northern Nebraska, 
south of the Black Hills, at Camp Robinson, 
was removed to White River, greatly to the dis- 
gust of the chief. A census of his people was 
then taken, showing their number — mostly 
Ogallalla Sioux— to be 9807. " Until the agent 
was supported by a military force," writes the 
Commissioner of Indian AfEairs, " the Indians 
had been able to refuse to allow him to count 

26 



302 ABSARAKA. 

them, and still to demand and draw rations." 
Frank D. Appleton, clerk of tlie Agent, was 
sliot by an Indian, who escaped, and much 
anxiety prevailed as to the attempt to bring the 
Indians under closer subordination and the 
necessary restraint. The Conmiissioner had 
doubts whether even Red Cloud would consent 
to settling down to a white man's work, and 
writes : " After sending messengers through the 
Powder River and Big Horn country, Red Cloud 
became convinced that there was not game enough 
to last through a war, and at a general council 
(Indian) it was resolved to protect any who wished 
to farm." The Spotted Tail Agency was also re- 
moved ten miles south of the l^ebraska line, and 
their enumeration showed a population (mostly 
Brule Sioux) of 7000 souls. 

The Rawlings Spring massacre, Wyoming 
Territory^ in June, growing mainly out of the 
uncertainty of reservation boundaries, and some 
inter-tribal conflicts, made the chief burden of 
Indian troubles for the year. The Cheyennes 
and Arrapahoes, in part, consented to remove to 
the Indian Territory, and the value of the policy 
finally adopted by President Grant, as the out- 
growth of the work of the Peace Commission in 
1868, was fully confirmed. During the month of 
August, Colonel Stanley, of the 22d Infantry, 
conducted a military expedition, nearly fifteen 
hundred strong, to the Yellowstone country, in 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 303 

tlie interests of the railroad survey ; Lieutenant- 
Colonel Custer, with eight companies of the 7th 
Cavalry, forming part of the column. The cav- 
alry moved in advance of the infantry, upon 
reaching Powder River, and advanced as far as 
Pompey's Pillar. The official report of their 
conflict with the Sioux, near Tongue River, on 
the 4th of August, is in the Army and Navy Jour- 
nal (vol. xi.), September 13th, 1873, and succeed- 
ing numbers. 

The attack was made by the Indians with 
great vigor, lasting from half-past ten a.m., 
until near three o'clock p.m., " all efforts of the 
Indians to dislodge us," writes General Custer, 
" proving unsuccessful." On the day following 
the cavalry took the oflensive and drove Sitting 
Bull, who was then present, eight miles, and 
over the Yellowstone. This fight was brought on 
by a decoy party of six, who " dashed boldly into 
the skirt of timber within which my command had 
halted and unsaddled, and attempted to stampede 
our horses," These Indians were followed, but 
they retired so leisurely as to excite suspicion, 
and finally, as they found that they were not 
pressed earnestly, " over three hundred well- 
mounted warriors dashed in perfect line from 
the edge of the timber, and charged down upon 
Captain Maylan's squadron, at the same time en- 
deavoring to intercept the small party with me." 

This fight, or succession of fights, continuing 



304 ABSARAKA. 

daily until the lltli of August, was sharp, and 
with fluctuating promise, until the entire force 
of the cavalry was fully engaged. The following 
additional extracts from the oflB.cial report are 
important as a lesson in Lidian warfare : 

Among the Indians who fought us were some of the identi- 
cal warriors who committed the massacre at Fort Phil Kear- 
ney, and they, no doubt, intended a similar programme when 
they sent the six warriors to dash up and attempt to decoy us 
into a pursuit past the timber, in which the savages hoped to 
ambush us. Had we pursued the six warriors half a mile 
farther, instead of halting, the entire band of warriors would 
have been in our rear, and all the advantages of position and 
numbers would have been with them. The number of Indians 
opposed to us has been estimated by the various otficers en- 
gaged as from eight hundred to one thousand, my command 
numbering four hundred and fifty officers and men. A large 
number of the Indians who fought us were fresh from their 
reservation on the Missouri Kiver. Many of the warriors en- 
gaged in the fight, on both days, were dressed in complete suits 
of the clothes issued at the Agencies to Indians. The arms with 
which they fought us (several of which were captured in the 
fight) were of the latest improved pattern of breech-loading 
repeating rifles, and their supply of metallic rifle cartridges 
seemed unlimited, as they were anything but sparing in its 
use." * 



* Companies A, Captain Maylan, Lieutenant Varnum ; B, 
Lieutenants T. W. Custer and B. H. Hodgson ; E, Lieuten- 
ants McDougall and Aspinwall ; F, Captain Gates, Lieutenant 
C. W. Larned ; G, Lieutenants Mcintosh and G. D. "Wallace ; 
K, Captain Owen Hale, Lieutenant E. S. Godfrey ; L, Lieu- 
tenants Weston and Braden ; M, Captain T. H. French and 
Lieutenant Mathey, were engaged, the two wings being com- 
manded by Captains V. K. Hart and French. The Indian 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 305 

The experience of General Custer on tliis oc- 
casion is that of all officers who have operated 
in that country, and the official examination as to 
Fetterman's massacre will indicate very clearly 
the success of that decoy policy to which he refers. 

The Yellowstone expedition had no trouhle 
with Indians after the hattle described, and both 
columns returned safely to their post on the 
Missouri River. 

The year 1873 closed with the formal demoli- 
tion of old Fort Kearney. From the time that 
Colonel May reared its flag-staff, and his dra- 
goons received its shelter, it has had a place in 
the respect of the army. Harney, Sumner, 
Cooke, and many other veteran Indian fighters, 
have their names associated with its older build- 
ings, and in 1865 there remained old adobe 
buildings, on the door-posts of which venerated 
names had been cut, when the first enthusiasm 
of frontier life was in the soul. To hundreds 
of officers there are dear associations linked 
with those double-storied barracks, with their 
broad piazzas for each story, and thousands of 
overland travelers have still in mind that suc- 
cession of ranches which are described on page 

loss was large in men and material, the cavalry losing four 
killed and four wounded. The brilliant series of fights during 
the period between the 4th and the 11th were well calculated 
to inspire the commander with unlimited confidence in his 
splendid command. 

26* 



306 ABSARAKA. 

56 of the Narrative as our own lialting-places 
in the march from Leavenworth to Kearney, in 
1865. Novel memories survive tlie old fort. In 
those days, when military authority alone existed, 
the post staif were authorized to perform the mar- 
riage ceremony. A sudden summons of one staff- 
officer to his first professional duty of the kind 
compelled him to hunt the Episcopal Prayer- 
Book. A brother officer held a tallow-candle, 
and showed him, first, an appropriate prayer, 
and pointed to the opposite page as the next 
formal passage. The prayer was devoutly read ; 
but what was the surprise of the bridal candi- 
dates and others present, when the following 
words followed, " Whereas it has pleased Al- 
mighty God to remove our beloved brother." 
Memory refuses to detail the hasty completion 
of the ceremony ; but a marriage certificate was 
duly given. On another occasion the officers 
went in full dress, as it was just before evening 
parade, accompanied by their wives, the band of 
thirty instruments doing its very best. Never 
did a frontier couple (and this couple was ordered 
to be married, or leave the post) unite their 
destinies with more enthusiastic surroundings. 
They went west, and the wife visited the same 
staff-officer at Camp Douglass, some years after, 
to apply for a divorce, because " her man had 
vagabonded to the mines." At this same old 
Kearney, Chambers' and Haymond's greyhounds, 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 307 

and Soskolski's bull-dogs, were always fighting 
or barking. A lady's riding-robe made of wolf- 
skins, and dragging on the ground, with an ac- 
companying head-dress of like material, with 
wolf-tails flying, is never forgotten, nor the ejacu- 
lation of the lieutenant-general, when the figure 
dashed by on a fiery, snorting steed, and he 
rushed to the door for a better view, — " What's 
thai ? What's that ? I thought it was an Indian, 
sure !" The contest of a lad, four years old, 
with the same officer, as to which could shoot 
an arrow over the flag-stafi", without lying on 
the back, and spreading the bow with the feet, 
comes, as of yesterday, fresh to mind. And 
from that old halting-place in life's pilgrimage 
comes the shadow of burials, as well as the 
novelty of marriages, when the dead march 
and solemn tread were followed by the laying 
away of the cold form in a desert place, where 
wolves roamed by night, and a quartermaster's 
plank was the only head-stone of record. 

The old fort has been demolished, and so, in 
turn, will pass away other strong defenses, which 
once were as Cities of Refuge in a boundless wil- 
derness ; but will not the incoming denizens of 
towns and cities, and the nation itself, forget as 
soon, the scores of army martyrs, who, in their 
establishment and defense, made possible, the 
succeeding civilization and safety ? 



308 ABSARAKA. 



CHAPTER XXXIV. 

INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS — INCIDENTS FROM 1874 
TO 1877. 

The military events which distinguished the 
period from 1874 to 1877, either express the re- 
luctance of the Indians to accept the treaties of 
1868, in their literal force, or grew out of inci- 
dental delays and modifications, in not promptly 
giving to the Indian the privileges which corre- 
spond to the rights surrendered. 

Let it be understood, as a historical fact, that 
American Indians, who have, in good faith and 
with a clear understanding of the terms, once 
formed friendship with the white man, have gen- 
erally been true to obligation. The Narragansetts 
and Delawares of early times, and the Pawnees 
and Crows of later times, are examples. 

The hostile operations of the period under 
notice had three localizations : 1st, That along 
Kansas, Kew Mexico, and Colorado ; 2d, That 
involved in the redemption of the Black Hills 
from Indian control ; and 3d, The struggle with 
Northern Indians who refused all terms, and 
claimed exclusive privileges in the Big Horn 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 309 

country, by virtue of ancient occupancy or old 
treaties. 

As early as March, 1874, several persons had 
been killed in Southern Kansas. The treaties 
of 1868 had, indeed, unqualifiedly vacated the 
claims of the Kiowas, Cheyennes, and Comanches 
to hunting privileges in that region ; and the op- 
erations undertaken were aggressive, and without 
apology, save as small parties might be ignorant 
of the terms or binding force of those treaties. 
It is but justice to the Lidian that we exercise 
some charity, when it is known that hundreds of 
statutes enacted by the white man, slowly reach 
the people, and the most inoperative of all, are 
game laws, and those that relate to minor trespass 
upon un-inclosed lands. The facts in this case, 
however, show that with the growth of the grass, 
the whole southwestern frontier was fretted with 
raids, and these gradually enlarged their scope 
and license until systematic warfare became in- 
evitable. 

On the 21st of July the Interior Department 
accepted the situation, as that of war, and applied 
to the War Department for " force to punish the 
hostile Indians wherever found." Colonel N. A. 
Miles, 5th Infantry, with four companies of that 
regiment and eight companies of the 6th Cavalry, 
struck the enemy a severe blow on the 30th of 
August, twelve miles south of Red River ; and 
in November the campaign resulted in still more 



310 ABSARAKA. 

severe puuisliment, the capture of the principal 
chiefs, and the consignment of thirty-nine of 
the most malignant, to military custody at Fort 
Marion, near St. Augustine, Florida.* These Li- 
dians were doubly ironed, for their journey, and 
are described by Bishop H. B. Whipple, of Min- 
nesota, " as desperate warriors as ever carried the 
tomahawk or knife." In a letter dated Savannah, 
Georgia, March 24th, 1876, he declares that they 
became Christianized " under the charge of that 
noble Christian soldier, Captain II. R. Pratt, 
seconded by every effort of Colonel Hamilton 
and General Dent." His testimony meets the 
familiar charge that Indians cannot be tamed 
and humanized. He writes : 

Their faces are changed. They have all lost that look of 
savage hate, and the light of a new life is dawning in their 
hearts. It was my privilege to preach to them every Sunday, 
and upon week-days I told them stories from the Bible. I 
have never had a more attentive congregation. Captain 
Pratt's success is due to the fact that he has taught them to 
labor : he has given them, in the best sense, a Christian school. 
The chief Ne-min-ick said, When I see the white man kneel, 
I know that he is talking to the Great Spirit, and asking for 
himself and children. I try, too, to send one little breath of 
prayer to the Great Spirit, that he will have pity on poor me. 

Other testimony conlirms Bishop Whipple's 
judgment as to the susceptibility of the Indian 
to sound religious impressions, when he has lirst 
learned to obey and accept the conditions of civil- 
ized life and usaa-e. 



* Released on good behavior, April, 1878. 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 311 

On the 10th of November, 1869, a commission 
which had been appointed by the President, 
under the Act of Congress of April lOth, 1869, 
to co-operate with the administration in the 
management of Indian Affairs, and consisting 
of Felix A. Brunot, Robert Campbell, Henry S. 
Lane, W. E. Dodge, Nathan Bishop, John V. 
Farwell, Vincent Collyer, George H. Stuart, and 
Samuel S. Tobey, thus speak of the Indians in 
their report : 

Paradoxical as it may seem, the white man has been the 
chief obstacle in the way of Indian civilization. To assert 
" that the Indian will not work" is as true as it would be to say 
that the white man will not work. In all countries there are 
non-working classes. The chiefs and warriors are the Indian 
aristocracy. They need only to be given incentives to induce 
them to work. "Why should the Indian be expected to plant 
corn, fence lands, build houses, or do anything but get food 
from day to day, when experience has taught him that the 
product of his labor will be seized by the white man to-mor- 
row ? The most industrious white man would become a drone 
under such circumstances. 

The wTiter has never forgotten the startling 
paradox presented by "White Head, a Northern 
Cheyenne chief, whose visit to us at Fort Phil 
Kearney is recorded on page 161 of the Narra- 
tive : " Why do the white men ask the Great 
Spirit to curse them so often ?" showing that 
even the savage, in his blindness, revolts from 
that profanity which degrades and brutalizes his 
civilized brother. This reference to the conduct 



312 ABSARAKA. 

of the Cheyenne captives is in harmony with the 
purpose to present various phases of this frontier 
service, and to testify that the conduct of Captain 
Pratt is not exceptional, but that in all ranks, and 
under the most fearful trials of border exposure, 
there are army officers who share in General 
Pope's opinion, that " it is most painful to pur- 
sue and punish Indians, who, by the neglect of 
the white man or the progress of settlement, are 
compelled to steal, or starve." 

During operations against Indians south of 
Kansas, which continued through 1874 and until 
February, 1875, Captain Lyman, 5th Cavalry, 
with one company of infantry, and a detachment 
of the 6th Cavalry, was corralled for three days, 
by four hundred Indians, south of the Washita, 
until relieved by Major "W. R. Price, 5th Cavalry, 
who came in from New Mexico to co-operate 
with Colonel Miles, Major James Biddle, and 
others, thus concentrated for duty in that region. 

In the Department of the Platte, Lieutenant 
L. H. Robinson, 14th Infixntry, was killed while 
in charge of a lumber-train near Laramie Peak 
saw-mill. Several parties of Arrapahoes and 
Cheyennes, who lodged near Pumpkin Buttes, 
made raids about Forts Steele and Sanders, and 
when Generals Sheridan and Ord were at Camp 
Brown, in June, Captain A. E. Bates, 2d Cav- 
alry, with his company, and one hundred and 
sixty friendly Shoshones, punished a hostile band 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 313 

of considerable size, and drove it back to the 
Buttes. On tbe 1st of July, Lieutenant-Colonel 
Custer made an exploring expedition to tbe 
Black Hills, and returned August oOtli, witbout 
meeting a hostile band. On the 27th of August, 
General Terry broke up a proposed expedition 
of citizens from Sioux City, Yankton, and Bis- 
marck, and the year 1874 closed amid substan- 
tial quiet in that region. 

This state of affairs redounds to the credit of 
many of the Indians then at Camp Robinson, 
Nebraska, where " Red Cloud," " Little Wound," 
" Sitting Bull," " Pawnee Killer," " American 
Horse," and other chiefs, together with nearly 
thirteen thousand Lidians, were gathered. Prof. 
O. C. Marsh, of Yale College, was at the Agency 
during the distribution of Lidian supplies in No- 
vember, 1874, en route for the Black Hills, where 
he finally obtained a large variety of fossils for 
the Peabody Museum of that University. Of the 
Indians, who gathered in great numbers about 
the Agency, he says, " They were armed quite as 
well as our soldiers, with breech-loading rifles 
and revolvers of the most recent pattern." Of 
the issues of beef, blankets, etc., he complains, in 
a letter to the President, as of inferior quality, 
deficient in amount, and tardily supplied. The 
opinions of Lieutenant-Colonel L. P. Bradley, 
and Major A. S. Burt, 9th Infantry, and Captain 
John Mix, Company M, 2d Cavalry, are given 

27 



314 ABSARAKA. 

in confirmation of liis judgment. The result of 
this tardiness and insufficiency became manifest 
through much suffering from cold during the 
winter, and Lieutenant W. L. Carpenter wrote 
in April, 1875, that " the Indians had been com- 
pelled to eat dogs, wolves, and ponies." Profes- 
sor Marsh says, " The supply of food purchased 
by the Government, carefully and honestly de- 
livered, would have prevented all this suffering." 
That Secretary Delano was in any sense privy to 
the malfeasance of subordinate agents or con- 
tractors, cannot be believed by any who knew 
him in private and professional life, as did the 
writer, in Ohio. 

The fact is, however, to be put to the credit of 
those Indian chiefs who, in spite of this wrong, 
abstained from war and maintained good faith ; 
while it may partially explain the large exodus 
of others from the Agencies, during the winter 
a,nd subsequent spring. 

In 1875, five raids were reported by General 
Augur for the month of April, by which several 
hundred horses were run off to Pumpkin Buttes, 
thence to Powder Eiver, and up to the camp of 
Sitting Bull. In May, Colonel R. J. Dodge, 23d 
Infantry, with six companies of cavalry and two 
of infantry, escorted a surveying party to the 
Black Hills and back again, without interruption. 
Mining Engineer Walter P. Jenny accompanied 
the expedition. In June, Lieutenant-Colonel 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS: 315 

James W. Forsyth, military secretary at General 
Sheridan's headquarters, and Lieutenant-Colonel 
F. D. Grant, A. D. C, with an escort of seven 
officers and one hundred men, took the steamer 
Josephine, and ascended the Yellowstone, ahove 
Pompey's Pillar, nearly two hundred and fifty 
miles above Powder River, or four hundred and 
thirty miles above Fort Buford (once Fort 
Union), at the mouth of the Yellowstone. Eight 
miles above Pryor's Fork, he met a large camp 
of the Crow Indians, estimated at three hundred 
and fifty-one lodges, but says, " 'No Sioux were 
seen at any time during the expedition^* During 
June and July several stock-stealing parties ap- 
proached Forts Steele and Sanders, but Colo- 
nel Gibbon promptly pursued, and again urged 
the establishment of the two large posts already 
alluded to. In June, also, parties broke away 
from Spotted Tail and Red Cloud Agencies ; the 
latter to punish the Shoshones who aided Cap- 
tain Bates in his pursuit of the Sioux in 1874. 
During this time strenuous efforts were made to 
keep miners out of the Black Hills, pending 
negotiations for their surrender to the United 
States. On the 29th of July, General Crook 
ordered all miners to leave, and Captains John 
Mix, 2d Cavalry, and Anson Mills, 3d Cavalry, 
had already acted efficiently in the same direc- 
tion. On the 15th of August, a proclamation 
of the President emphatically enforced this 



316 ABSARAKA. 

policy. The Secretary of War, in his report of 
JSTovember 22d, 1875, says : 

The report of General Augur foreshadows trouble be- 
tween the miners and the Indians of the country known as 
the Black Hills, unless something be done to obtain posses- 
sion of that section ; for the white miners have been strongly 
attracted there by the reports of rich deposits of the precious 
metal. 

General Sherman, in his annual report of 
November 2d, says : 

Generally speaking, the damage to life and property by 
Indians, is believed to be less during the past j^ear than in any 
former year, and the prospect is that as the country settles it 
will be less, till all the Indians are established on small reser- 
vations. But until they acquire habits of industry, in farm- 
ing and stock-raising, they will need food from the General 
Government, because the game on which they have subsisted 
has diminished very rapidly. 

Thus gradually, year by year, the country 
along the completed railroad began to realize 
rest. Just at the close of 1875, the Indian Com- 
missioner thus alludes to the portions of the 
Northwest which still remained unpaciiied : 

It will probably be found necessary to compel the North- 
ern, non-treaty Sioux, under the leadership of Silting Bull, 
who have never yet in any way acknowledged the United 
States Government, except by snatching rations occasionally 
at an Agency, and such outlaws from the several Agencies as 
have attached themselves to these same hostilcs, to cease ma- 
rauding. 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 317 

The year 1876, the National Centennial year, 
and the tenth after the first military occupation 
of the Big Horn country and the resulting mas- 
sacre of Fetterman's command, brought back 
the Indian war to the same field of carnage, and 
culminated in Custer's similar fate. 

The campaign opened early. Pursuant to the 
proposition of the Interior Department, made 
December 3d, 18-75, that " runners be first sent to 
warn the Indians to come in by or before January 
31st, 1876, or a military force would be sent to 
compel them," active operations were postponed, 
until, at the expiration of that time, the whole 
matter was placed in the hands of the military 
authorities. The first blow was struck from the 
south, and by reference to the map the general 
progress of the column can be traced. 

General Sherman's annual report for 1876 
states the strength of the column, which was 
accompanied by General Crook in person, as 
" Ten companies of the 2d and 3d Cavalry, un- 
der Colonel J. J. Eeynolds, 3d Cavalry; two 
companies of the 4th Infantry ; and, with team- 
sters and guides, a force of eight hundred and 
eighty-three men." 

The rendezvous was Fort Fetterman, on the 
North Platte, and the companies began to arrive 
on the 22d of February. On the 1st of March 
the advance began. After reaching Crazy 
"Woman's Fork, the wagons were sent back to 
27* 



318 ABSARAKA. 

Fort Reno, now Fort McKinney, under escort of 
infantry, and pack-mules were used for transpor- 
tation of ammunition and rations for fifteen days. 
Shortly after passing Crazy Woman's Fork, March 
7th, the troops moved nearly north from the Old 
Phil Kearney road. In a telegram, dated Fort 
Reno, March 22d, General Crook says : 

We scouted the Tongue and Eosebud Eivers until satisfied 
that there were no Indians upon them, then struck across the 
country toward Powder Elver. General Eeynolds, with part 
of the command, was pushed forward on a trail leading to the 
village of Crazy Horse, near the mouth of the Little Powder 
Eiver. This he attacked and destroyed on the 17th inst., 
finding it a perfect magazine of ammunition, war material, 
and general supplies. Crazy Horse had with him the North- 
ern Cheyennes and some of the Minneconjous, — probably, in 
all, one-half of the Indians ofi" the reservation. Every evi- 
dence was found to prove these Indians in a partnership with 
those at the Eed Cloud and Spotted Tail Agencies, and that 
the proceeds of these raids upon the settlements had been 
taken to those settlements and supplies brought back in return. 
I am satisfied that if Sitting Bull is on this side of the Yel- 
lowstone, that he is camped at the mouth of Powder Eiver. 
We experienced severe weather during our absence from the 
wagon-train, snow falling every day but one, and the mer- 
curial thermometer on several occasions failing to register. 

General Sherman says : 

Colonel Eeynolds moved at 5 p.m. of the IGth, and by a 
night march struck the camp of Crazy Horse the next morn- 
ing. The Indians fled to the hills, leaving the camp in the 
hands of the troops, who proceeded to destroy it and its con- 
tents by fire. The Indians molested the troops during this 
operation by firing from rocks, bushes, and gullies, but the 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 319 

village was utterly destroyed, when Colonel Roj^nolds drew 
off and proceeded to make junction with General Crook at the 
time and place appointed. Much controversy then arose, and 
still continues, as to whether Colonel Rej'nolds accomplished 
all that his opportunities afforded. Nevertheless, he made 
junction with General Crook on the morning of the 18th, near 
the place agreed on, when the expedition returned to Fort 
Fetterman, reaching that place March 26th. 

If tlie reader will turn to page 220-225 of the 
ISTarrative, and read the public opinions given at 
the time concerning Fetterman's massacre, he 
can estimate the value of the usual newspaper 
speculations which immediately illustrate a mili- 
tary disappointment, and neither the character 
nor distinguished career of Colonel Reynolds 
exempted him from this experience. The general 
facts in the case are as follows : 

On the 16th of March, the command then 
being on Tongue Eiver, followed Red Clay 
Creek eastward, crossed the divide, and reached 
Otter Creek early in the afternoon. Two Indians 
had been seen by the scouts. The command was 
divided. Colonel Reynolds, with one day's ra- 
tions, unincumbered by blankets or any super- 
fluous impediments, was detailed with six com- 
panies, — a total force of about three hundred 
men, — and a small detachment of fifteen scouts, 
and pushed the trail of the two Indians toward 
Powder River ; while General Crook, with four 
companies and the pack-train, was to move to, 
or near the mouth of, Lodge Pole Creek, on the 



320 ABSARAKA. 

same river, witli view to a junction of forces the 
next evening. This would complete the proposed 
circuit, and hring the command to Fort Reno, 
within the fifteen days for which rations had heen 
provided upon leaving the supply-wagons. As 
a matter of fact this was safely accomplished. 
Colonel Reynolds's command gained the vicinity 
of Powder River ahout four a. m. of the 17th. The 
troops were at once secreted in a ravine until the 
advanced scouts could make report; and upon 
the discovery that a heavy trail had been struck, 
the forward movement was renewed. The march 
from Tongue River to that point, a distance of 
nearly fifty miles, had heen made since the pre- 
vious morning, — much of the time over rugged 
bluffs, up narrow valleys, and through a country 
of great exposure. At about sunrise there was 
partially disclosed an Indian camp of something 
over one hundred lodges, settled in the Canon, 
or basin of Powder River, at a point where it 
widened out, but was environed by precipitous 
bluffs and hills of from three hundred to six 
hundred feet in height. Lieutenant Morton, 
adjutant of the expedition, in a sketch of the 
surroundings, has estimated some of the hills as 
eight hundred feet above the river-bed. 

The access to this valley, or bottom area, was 
by precipitous and roclvy banks, requiring horses 
to be carefully led, and, in places, barely accessi- 
ble by men on foot, and the conformation of the 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 321 

land, generally, was sucli that no impromptu 
combination could guarantee that different com- 
panies could equally well descend and then act, 
as pre-arranged. The details of the bluff range 
were not even known to the scouts, and the sole 
hope of success lay in an early and effective sur- 
prise. This locality was nearly, or quite, one 
hundred miles north of Fort Reno, with deep 
snow covering foot-falls, and fissures opening 
here and there, to deceive the eye and step. 

About eight o'clock a.m. the camp was clearly 
defined, and a large number of ponies and mules 
were seen to be in charge of Indian herders. The 
battalion of Captain Noyes, Companies I and K, 
2d Cavalry, descended the mountain, in order 
that Captain Egan, with Company K, might 
charge the village, pistol in hand, while Captain 
Noyes should cut off the herd, as the column ad- 
vanced towards the village which was beyond 
the herd, (/ompanies E and F, 3d Cavalry, of 
Captain Morris's battalion. Lieutenant Rawolle 
commanding the latter, were to dismount, leave 
their horses with holders, and covertly approach 
the village to support Captain Egan when he 
should make his charge. Of Companies E and 
M, 3d Cavalry, Captain Mills (commanding bat- 
talion), with Company M, was to dismount, de- 
scend the mountain, and support Captain Moore ; 
while Lieutenant Johnson, with Company E, 
was to make the best of his way down, to also 



322 ABSARAKi. 

co-operate as opportunity offered. The village 
was on the river, pretty close to a bluft*, and the 
attacks were made from the southwest and west, 
where the bluffs fell back, and where there was 
ample room for the Indian herds to graze. 

The charge of Captain Egan was a success. 
The Indians, evidently surprised, gave way be- 
fore his fierce assault, and abandoned their lodges 
for trees, ravines, and other coverts, from which 
to annoy the troops. About noon they made an 
unsuccessful attempt to regain the village, but it 
was already on fire, and they were promptly re- 
pulsed. The ponies and mules, estimated at 
about seven hundred head, were also promptly 
captured, and in spite of desultory attacks and 
continued skirmishing, the dismounted com- 
panies regained their horses, and the march to 
Lodge Pole Creek was accomplished that even- 
ing, with a loss of only four men killed and five 
wounded. The weather was intensely cold. 
Colonel Reynolds had his face frosted, and many 
suflfered extremely, only being kept from freezing 
by enforced activity and watchful care. 

The Indian ponies, which were forced along as 
far as Lodge Pole Creek, were herded at night 
in the valley, on the advice of scouts, to find 
their own grazing, as there was no forage. 
Nearly one hundred had been killed, of neces- 
sity; of the residue, the greater portion strayed 
away the next morning, or were drawn ofi" by 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 323 

Indians, so that with some gathered up by the 
other column as it approached the rendezvous, 
probably not more than two hundred and fifty 
were ultimately brought to Fort Reno. The 
troops were nearly worn out, without rations 
during the night and the next morning, and, as 
appears from General Sherman's statement, they 
had much to do to keep from freezing to death. 

Incidental charges Avere exchanged by officers 
of the command, and the possibilities within the 
reach of an adequate, well-equipped force, with 
fore-knowledge of the location of the village, 
irritated the public mind for a while, and then 
all was forgotten, in the real success achieved. 

This attack, however, on the village of Crazy 
Horse, involving a march of fifty-five miles, in a 
little more than twenty-four hours, in such a 
country, thirty miles of it at night, with snow a 
foot deep, with ice from twelve to fourteen inches 
to cut through to get water, with the mercury 
30° below zero; the destruction of large sup- 
lies, then of the greatest value to the Indians ; 
the capture of seven hundred head of stock, in 
the teeth of an equal, or superior force, contest- 
ing every step and movement for four hours of 
fighting, and an additional twenty miles of march- 
ing immediately after the fight, all in thirty-six 
hours, is a vivid episode of frontier service, show- 
ing both how much can be done, and how much 
more the American people expect to be done. 



324 ABSARAKA. 

If the average citizen will fancy himself a horse- 
holder on such an occasion, with six or eight 
horses to control, while rifle-shots and pistol- 
shots and Indian yells abound ; all the time watch- 
ing ravines and fissures for some scouring party 
of savages to emerge, with flaunting robes, to put 
each individual horse into a frenzy of kicking, 
rearing, and biting ; at the same time half frozen, 
and half starved, on hard-tack and snow, he will 
then assuredly understand the difference between 
the appreciation of such work, by a personal ex- 
perience, and the dime-novel programme of heroic 
deliverances, in warfare on the Plains. 

General Crook reached the rendezvous during 
the forenoon of the 18th, with the other four 
companies and the supply-train, having been 
unexpectedly delayed on the march, and the 
column reached Fort Reno on the 21st, with 
more than a hundred horses broken down, but 
with the satisfaction of having accomplished an 
extraordinary march, with signal injury to the 
enemy. 

On the 24th of October, at the close of the 
Big Horn campaign. General Crook, then at 
Camp Robinson, thus pays tribute to the troops : 

In the campaign now closed, he (the general comniantling) 
had been obliged to. call upon you for much hard service and 
many sacrifices of personal comfort. At times you have been 
out of reach of your base of supplies ; in most inclement 
weather you have marched without food and slept without 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 325 

shelter. Indian warfare is, of all warfare, the most trying, 
the most dangerous, and the most thankless. In it you are 
required to serve without the incentive to promotion or re- 
cognition ; in truth, without favor or hope of reward. 

The notification, by the runners of the Lidian 
Department, that " unless the Indians came in 
by January 31st, 1876, a military force would be 
sent to compel them," failed; and "The expe- 
dition itself," says General Sherman, " was not 
satisfactory or conclusive; therefore. General 
Sheridan determined to proceed more syste- 
matically, by concentric movements, similar to 
those which in 1874-5 had proved so successful 
at the south against the hostile Comanches, 
Kiowas, and Cheyennes." 

This introduces the train of events which made 
the year 1876 especially memorable in Indian war, 
and focalized public sentiment, at last, rightly to 
estimate the real issue in the I^orthwest. The 
initial operations were based upon the assump- 
tion that the Literior Department had approxi- 
mate data as to the number of Indians who were 
still hostile, and that those reported at Agencies 
might be considered out of the reckoning. From 
five hundred to eight hundred Indians was the 
highest estimate of an anticipated resisting force 
to either one of the three columns about to be set 
in motion, and the entire number then, in open 
hostility, was not estimated greatly to exceed that 
number. 

28 



326 ABSARAKA. 

General Crook left Fort Fetterman, May 29th, 
with two battalions of the 2d Cavalry, under 
Lieutenant-Colonel AV. B. Royal; 3d Cavalry; 
five companies of the 4th and 9th Infantry, under 
Major Alexander Chambers (now lieutenant- 
colonel 21st Infantry), with wagons, pack-mules, 
and scouts ; altogether forty-seven officers and 
one thousand and two men present for duty. His 
supply camp was made at Goose Creek. The 
march began on the 16th, and on the 17th a 
larffc force of Indians attacked his column as 
it descended Rosebud Creek, fighting on both 
sides of the creek until night came on. The 
Indians left thirteen dead on the field. General 
Crook's loss was nine killed and twenty-one 
wounded. Captain Guy V. Henry, 3d Cavalry, 
being of the latter number. Of this operation 
of the campaign, General Sherman's report 
says : 

The ground was so rough, so covered with rocks, trees, and 
bushes, that it was impossible to estimate, approximately, the 
force of the enemy ; but General Crook was satisfied that the 
number and quality of his enemy required more men than he 
had, and being already encumbered with wounded, he con- 
cluded to return to his train on Goose Creek, which he reached 
on the 19th, and sent back for reinforcements. 

General Terry, with the 7th Cavalry, about six 
hundred strong, Lieutenant-Colonel Custer com- 
manding, and four hundred infantry, left Fort 
Abraham Lincoln May 17th, and reached the 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 327 

mouth of Powder River June 9tli, wliere steam- 
boats met him, and a supply camp was estab- 
lished. He reached the mouth of Rosebud on 
the 21st. 

The following distances are given in a report 
of Major George A. Forsyth, viz. : from mouth of 
Powder River to Tongue River, thirty-seven miles ; 
to Little Porcupine River, sixty-eight miles; to 
Big Porcupine River, seventy-seven miles ; to 
Rig Horn River, one hundred and sixty-four 
miles ; to Pompey's Pillar, two hundred and 
three miles ; to Pryor's Fork, two hundred and 
twenty-six miles. 

Colonel John Gibbon, 7th Infantry, with four 
hundred and fifty men from 2d Cavalry and 7th 
Infantry, marched from Ellis to a point opposite 
Rosebud. A glance at the map will show that 
if General Crook had been strong enough to 
have taken the ofiensive from Goose Creek, the 
army would have had the control of the rectangle, 
three sides of which are represented by the Big 
Horn, Yellowstone, and Rosebud Rivers ; but at 
the same time the roughness of the country, and 
the really great distances, for a substantial com- 
bination against so mobile a foe as the Indian, 
made the campaign one of extraordinary diffi- 
culty. Nor must it be forgotten that, in the ope- 
rations of General Crook from the Fort Phil 
Kearney line, the communications with troops on 
the Yellowstone were cut oft', requiring a circuit 



328 ABSARAKA. 

of two thousand miles before infotmation could 
be obtained, and this was material to the highest 
success. Reinforcements did not reach General 
Crook, and an important fact, which began to be 
known to the people, was not known, and could 
not be known, to the army of the Yellowstone, 
and that was, the large number of Indians absent 
from the Agencies to take the war-path. 

The 2d Cavalry scouted the Yellowstone as far 
up as the Big Horn River, and no Indians had 
crossed, although Indian pickets had approached 
the river and come into collision with those of 
Captains Ball and Wheeler's companies. Major 
Reno, 7th Cavalry, ascended Powder River to the 
mouth of Little Powder River, found a large 
trail, estimated as nine days old, and crossed over 
the divide, to Tongue River, without meeting an 
enemy. 

At the mouth of Rosebud, General Terry, 
Colonel Gibbon, and Lieutenant-Colonel Cus- 
ter determined upon their future action, all cir- 
cumstances indicating that the Indians were 
between Rosebud and Little Big Horn Rivers. 
Colonel Gibbon's command was sent to the Big 
Horn, by steamer, with orders to ascend that 
river, at least to the Little Big Horn, while Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel Custer was ordered to ascend the 
Rosebud, to cross the trail reported by Major 
Reno, but not to follow it, then to bear to his 
left, farther to the south, so as to prevent the 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 329 

Indians slipping by to tlae niountains. General 
Terry says in his report : 

We calculated it would take Gibbon's column until the 26th 
to reach the mouth of the Little Big Horn, and that the wide 
sweep I had proposed Custer should make would require so 
much time that Gibbon would be able to co-operate with him 
in attacking any Indians that might be found on the stream. 
Lieutenant-Colonel Custer said his marches would be at the 
rate of about thirty miles a day. Measurements were made, 
and calculations based, on that rate of progress. I talked with 
him about his strength, and at one time suggested that per- 
haps it would be well for me to take Gibbon's Cavalry and go 
with him. To the latter suggestion he replied that, without 
reference to the command, he would prefer his own regiment 
alone. As a homogeneous body, as much could be done with 
it as with the two combined. He expressed the utmost confi- 
dence that he had all the force he could need, and I shared his 
confidence. I offered Custer the battery of Gatling guns, but 
he declined it, saying that it might embarrass him, and that he 
was strong enough without it. The movements proposed by 
General Gibbon's column were carried out to the letter, and 
had the attack been deferred until it was up, I cannot doubt 
that we should have been successful. The Indians had evi- 
dently prepared themselves for a stand ; but, as I learned from 
Captain Benteen that, on the 22d, the cavalry marched twelve 
miles; on the 23d tAventy-five miles; from 5 a.m. till 8 p.m. 
of the 24th, forty-five miles ; and then, after night, ten miles 
farther, resting, but without unsaddling, twenty-three miles 
to the battle field, the proposed route was not taken, but as 
soon as the trail was struck it was followed. I do not tell you 
this to cast any reflections upon Custer, for whatever errors he 
may have committed, Custer's action is inexplicable in the 
case. 

The reports of Major Eeno, and others, sub- 
stantially concur in this statement, that the trail 

28* 



330 ABSARAKA. 

was followed as soon as readied, and was sharply 
crowded, until there was developed a large In- 
dian village, in the valley of the Little Big Horn. 
Like the hunter in the chase, knowing well that 
the discovery of his presence would disperse the 
objects of such long and eager pursuit, and that 
failure to attack, in case the game brought to 
bay should escape, would mortify his command, 
and possibly bring professional reproach, Custer 
seems to have been impelled, as on the "VVashita, 
to dare the risks, for a crowning victory. As- 
sured that the enemy had not gained his left and 
escaped to the Big Horn mountains, and believing, 
as he had ground to believe, that his force was 
equal to fight any band which he might meet, he 
has closed a career of rare brilliancy and prom- 
ise, only to testify of the extreme contingencies 
of frontier service, and to stimulate the nation to 
a more hearty sympathy and more appreciative 
regard for those who are required to meet its 
obligations. 

The regiment approached the Little Big Horn 
River in three columns. Major Reno, in the 
centre, crossed the river by a practicable ford, 
with the trail, as ordered, and dashed down the 
valley with Companies A, G, and M. Captain 
Benteen, with Companies D, H, and K, then 
two miles above the ford, was on his march to 
join the command, as ordered, before Custer 
left; and Lieutenant-Colonel Custer, with Com- 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 331 

panics C, E, F, I, and L, moved down the bluif 
on tlie right bank, to cross three miles below. 
Any small band of Indians would seem to have 
been completely within the grasp, of this order 
of attack. Reno's command found themselves 
confronted by superior numbers eager to take 
the offensive, so that, fighting now on foot and 
then from the saddle, it was with difiiculty that 
he regained the ford and a defensive position on 
the bluff. Here, supported by Benteen's bat- 
talion and Company B, which had previously 
guarded the supplies, the fight continued, under 
cover of rifle-pits, behind heaps of saddles, and 
desperately, until six o'clock of the 26th, when 
the Lidians withdrew, admonished of the ap- 
proach of General Terry's command from the 
north. About ten o'clock that column came in 
sight. Of the scene of the massacre. General 
Terry writes, June 27th, " It is marked by the 
remains of his officers and men and the bodies 
of his horses, some of them strewed along the 
path, others heaped where halts appear to have 
been made." 

As if the veil might yet be lifted, there have 
been some assurances that Corj^oral Ryan sur- 
vived, as a prisoner, and that the British author- 
ities have been requested to apply to Sitting Bull 
for his surrender. A statement of Red Horse, 
who surrendered in February, 1877, gave sub- 
stantially the same version, however, as to the 



332 ABSARAKA. 

movements of Major Reno, the approach of 
General Terry's command, and the fact, that 
Custer's column was so overpowered by num- 
bers, as to offer only brief resistance. 

The rescued remains have received worthy 
burial ; but the nation mourns, too late, the ne- 
cessity, which compelled a handful of fearless 
men to contend with a host, in a fight where 
victory or death was the alternative destiny of 
the white man. 

General Sheridan at once concentrated all the 
available force of his division. Lieutenant-Col- 
onel Carr and ten companies, 5th Cavalry, joined 
General Crook at Goose Creek, via Fort Laramie, 
and detachments of infantry were sent to the 
same column. Colonel Miles moved from the 
south of Kansas with the 5th Lifantry. Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel Otis, with six companies of the 
22d Infantry and four companies of artillery 
from the Atlantic coast, were sent to General 
Terry. 

As early as July 26th, General Crook was in 
communication with General Terry, each with a 
nominal command of about two thousand men ; 
but General Sheridan thus reported, August 5th : 
" General Crook's total strength is seventeen 
hundred and seventy-four, and Terry's eighteen 
hundred and seventy-eight ; and to give this force 
to them, I have stripped every post from the line 
of Manitoba to Texas." " Both columns," says 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 333 

General Sherman, " of about tlie same strength, 
moved as agreed upon, and made junction on the 
Eosebud, August 10th, at a point thirty-five miles 
above its mouth. The Indians had, as expected, 
slipped out, and neither column had a chance to 
strike a blow. The Indians in their retreat left 
a broad trail leading toward Tongue River. This 
was followed promptly and steadily, but it seems 
to be impossible to force Indians to fight at a dis- 
advantage in their own country. Their sagacity 
and skill surpass that of the white race." 

On the 14th of September, Captain Anson 
Mills, 3d Cavalry, struck a small village, killed 
American Horse, before referred to as present at 
a friendly conference, and at Red Cloud Agency, 
ISTovember, 1874 ; and the whole autumn was sig- 
nalized by hard marches, in " the most inaccessi- 
ble and difficult country, east of the Rocky Moun- 
tains." 

The Yellowstone River closed too early for es- 
tablishment of permanent posts, and winter can- 
tonments were established at Goose Creek and 
Tongue River. On the 18th of October a sup- 
ply-train was attacked near Glendive Creek, not 
far from Tongue River, and active marching was 
resumed. 

Meanwhile the disarming of the Indians at the 
Agencies, was enforced, and the small army was 
needed, all over Dacotah. Colonel ]\Iiles pursued 
and overtook Sitting Bull, on the 21st of October, 



334 ABSARAKA. 

to be met by the request for supplies, peace, and 
ammunition. Two days of conference was suc- 
ceeded by hostilities. The Indians were pursued 
forty-two miles across the Yellowstone, and on 
the 27th of October they sued for peace, giving 
Red Skirt, "White Bull, Black Eagle, Sun 
Rise, and Foolish Thunder as hostages for 
the others' reporting at the posts named. Crazy 
Horse sought refuge in the buffalo country, and 
escaped up Powder River. On the 16tli of No- 
vember Greneral Crook again left Fort Fetter- 
man, and crowded Crazy Horse tow^ard the Black 
Hills. Colonel Mackenzie destroyed a Cheyenne 
camp ITovember 21st, on the west fork of Pow- 
der River, and the country north of the Yellow- 
stone was so thoroughly scoured, that the remain- 
ing Lidians were driven out of the region lying 
between the Muscle Shell and the Dry Fork of 
the Missouri River. 

On the 17th of December, Bull Eagle, Tall 
Bull, Red Cloth, and another chief approached 
the Tongue River cantonment with a white flag, 
but were shot by Crow Indians, whose antipathy 
to the old enemies who had robbed them of the 
country, broke forth, before any efl:brt could be 
made to arrest the attack. The best satisfaction 
possible was given by way of explanation and 
presents ; but General Crook, in referring to the 
matter, says, " The affair was most unfortunate, 
as their coming in would have secured the 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 335 

surrender of at least one thousand figrhtins: 
men." 

Already, the supervision of the Lower Brule, 
Cheyenne River, and Standing Rock Agencies 
had been turned over to the military authorities, 
(as early as July), so that captured Indians could 
be brought together and the peaceable kept from 
roaming; and army officers also discharged the 
duties of agent at Red Cloud and Spotted Tail 
Agencies. To all of them there came, for food 
and winter shelter, bands of the very Indians 
who participated in the fights in the Big Horn 
country. 



^IQ ABSARAKA. 



CHAPTER XXXV. 

INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS — INCIDENTS OF 1877 — 
THE NEZ PERCES WAR. 

The period now under review is full of facts 
which confirm the opinion early advanced by 
General Sherman, that the Indian question must 
be settled by assuring to him a permanent reser- 
vation, sufiiciently accessible for the general su- 
pervision of the Government, and so restricted that 
he must adopt the white man's mode of living and 
be cut off from free roving on the plains. Already 
the tide of travel, if not the course of settlement, 
has impaired successful hunting in large bands, 
and the time has come when the nation demands 
that the attitude of all Indians shall be settled, 
so that the question of peace or war shall find a 
definite solution. Distant and inaccessible reser- 
vations, where the Indians had arms and horses, 
and hunted at will over large areas of country, 
not only exposed them to the influence of wild 
and uncontrollable bands, but left open an easy 
method by which the young men could absent 
themselves, mingle with hostile parties, and then 
seek a place of refuge, either unsuspected or un- 
punished. The ditficulty of finding responsible 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 337 

chiefs, who could, in reality, control and vouch 
for wandering Indians, was insurmountable. 

As early as 1869, Messrs. Brunot and Campbell, 
and Hon. Henry S, Lane, of Indiana, with other 
commissioners, had advised the abandonment of 
the treaty system, saying, " The legal status of 
the uncivilized Indian should be that of wards 
of the Government ; the duty of the latter being 
to protect them, to educate them in industry, the 
arts of civilization, and the principles of Chris- 
tianity, elevate them to the rights of citizenship, 
and to sustain them until they can support them- 
selves." 

The year 1877 was one of great unrest among 
the bands which were on recognized terms of 
friendship. The prudential reasons which led to 
the disarming and dismounting of some of these 
bands, coupled with their third assignment to 
reservations, incited distrust. Agent J. F. Cra- 
vens, particularly noticed the effect produced by 
news of the annihilation of General Custer's 
command; and military commanders clearly 
show, that in nearly all conflicts during the last 
four years in the three military departments of 
the plains, there have been participants, who 
had been fed and provided for by the United 
States. The partial transfer of Arrapahoes and 
Cheyennes to the Indian Territory, and the defi- 
nite location of the Ogallalla and Brule Sioux, 
until they also shall be drifted in the same direc- 

29 



338 ABSAEAKA. 

tion, would seem to bring the main question to 
that of the disposal of Sitting Bull and the bands 
which still vibrate between the Yellowstone and 
the British possessions. The establishment of 
two strong posts, both memorial in name, Fort 
Keogh, at the mouth of Tongue Eiver, and Fort 
Custer, on the Big Horn, below the old site of 
Fort C. F. Smith, will realize that which Gen- 
erals Pope, Hancock, and Terry long urged, — the 
maintenance of strong central positions, capable 
of outside operations, rather than the distribution 
of small posts, hardly self-sustaining. The latter 
system suits a railroad or stage-route, subject to 
small depredations, but is only aggravating and 
weak, in the midst of regions thoroughly hostile. 
The Secretary of War, under date of July 8th, 
1876, in urging the establishment of two new 
posts, thus writes to the President : " The task 
committed to the military authorities is one of 
unusual difficulty, has been anticipated for years, 
and must be met and accomplished." Neither 
must it be overlooked that while the Yellowstone 
Eiver is open from May to October, the larger 
number of expeditions sent to this theatre of 
conflict have marched by the very route on 
which were located the posts erected in 1866. 
The original orders creating the Rocky Mountain 
District directed Colonel Carrington to abandon 
Fort Reno, and, besides the post afterwards 
known as Fort Phil Kearney, to buikl posts on 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 339 

tlie Big Horn River, and on or near the upper 
Yellowstone. The force was insufficient to build 
and protect three new posts, and Fort Reno could 
not be prudently abandoned, so that the third 
post, now Fort Ellis, which has become so im- 
portant, had to be, for the time, postponed. The 
commanding officer of that district, Colonel Car- 
rington, in the establishment of the two original 
posts, realized that they were placed where it fell 
heaviest upon the Indians, and, therefore, better 
for the emigrant, and, in October, 1866, when 
citizens complained of insufficiency of escort, and 
that the Indians were not pursued and exter- 
minated, thus declared his policy : 

I do not regard my occupation of this line as a temporary 
expedition to chastise Indians, but as designed to establish a 
solid basis for ultimate operations, to whatever extent they 
may be required. I expect to be harassed, and to have con- 
stant skirmishing and minor fights ; but I propose to follow 
up a constant, persistent purpose, to make permanent every 
progress, and not to hazard all, for the uncertainties attending 
the invasion of distant Indian villages with an inadequate 
force, leaving an inadequate garrison behind. Understanding 
well that I have to bear the responsibility, I propose respect- 
fully to receive any communications that citizens may furnish, 
but to maintain the general views laid down, whether accept- 
able to them now or otherwise. I know it will bring some 
results in the end, while hot impulses and rash expeditions 
will only bring discredit, and make the emigration next spring 
doubly dangerous. 

That policy has been \andicated. The instruc- 
tions of the lieutenant-general, sent from Lara- 



340 ABSARAKA. 

mie during liis visit at that post, were, to " dis- 
criminate carefully between Indians who honestly 
desired peace, and those who were hostile," with 
the further information that " the Government is 
not prepared for, neither does it desire, a general 
Indian war." 

The campaign of 1876 over-ran, into the year 
1877, and there was little rest for the worn-out 
troops during the winter. Colonel Miles attacked 
Crazy Horse in the valley of Tongue River on 
the 8th of January, after a week of almost daily 
skirmishing, and routed his band, but the stock 
was too broken down to follow up the success, 
and Crazy Horse retreated to the Big Horn 
mountains. In a congratulatory order to his 
regiment, of January 31st, he notices their 
march of twelve hundred miles in three months, 
and fitly commends their merit. 

In April the Sioux began to come in to the 
Agencies in larij-e numbers. The Indian Com- 
missioner reports "that Spotted Tail went out 
with two hundred and fifty of his principal men 
to urge the return of his people to their Agency 
and allegiance, adding, " His return in April 
with a following of one thousand one hundred, 
attested the remarkable success of his mission ; 
and for this eminent service, which virtually 
ended the Sioux war, and his unswerving loyalty 
throughout the Avhole campaign, some suitable 
testimonial should be tendered him." 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 341 

May 5th, Colonel Miles had a fight on Muddy 
Creek, a small branch of Rosebud, with Lame 
Deer, capturing four hundred and fifty ponies, 
and inflicting much loss, but narrowly saving 
his own life. Iron Star shook hands with him, 
then picking up his carbine, fired, the ball miss- 
ing its mark, but killing a soldier behind him. 
This was after protection had been ofiered to all 
who would surrender. Ball's, Tyler's, Wheeler's, 
and llTorwood's companies of the 2d Cavalry were 
in the fight, and Dickey's, Poole's, Miner's and 
Casick's companies of the 22d, as well as a de- 
tachment of the 5th Infantry. 

On the 6th of May, at Camp Robinson, Crazy 
Horse surrendered, being introduced to Lieuten- 
ant Clark, of Gleneral Crook's stafi", by Red Cloud. 
This surrender represented twelve hundred In- 
dians under Crazy Horse, Little Hawk, Little 
Big Man, Bull Hawk, and Bad Road, and in- 
cluded more than two thousand ponies. 

In July, Captain Kellog, of the 5th Cavalry, 
made a scout from Goose Creek along the Rose- 
bud and Little Big Horn, and discovered no 
signs of Indians. Captain Mills also escorted 
two pack-trains to the mouth of Tongue River, 
turned over the trains to Colonel Miles, and after 
riding three hundred miles over the country, so 
infested in 1876, returned to Goose Creek with- 
out encountering an enemy. 

July 25th, General Sherman dates a report, — 
29* 



342 ABSARAKA. 

*' Headquarters of tlie Army of the United States, 
on the Steamer Rosebud, Big Horn River, hav- 
ing steamed up the Big Horn Elver to the pres- 
ent Fort Custer, at the forks of Big Horn and 
Little Big Horn." General Sheridan had just 
come across from Camp Stambaugh, and had 
seen no Indians. General Sherman writes : 

With this post, and that at the mouth of the old Tongue 
Kiver, occupied by strong, enterprising garrisons, these Sioux 
Indians can never regain this country, and they will be forced 
to remain at their Agencies or take refuge in the British pos- 
sessions. At this moment there are no Indians here or here- 
abouts ; I have seen or heard of none. The country west of 
this is a good country, and will rapidly fill up with emigrants, 
and will, in the next four years, build up a community as 
strong and capable of self-defence as Colorado. 

On the 20th of August, Major James S. Bris- 
bin, 2d Cavalry, reached the mouth of Clear 
Creek (see map), a branch of Powder River, 
and found signs of a recent encampment. On 
the 21st he continued the pursuit through the 
rav-ines and over mountains and gullies ; but l*ie 
Indians lied without battle, abandoning lodge- 
poles, kettles, cups, and even saddle-blankets. 

On the 27th of August, 1877, the following 
Agencies were announced, subject to a possible 
change, in the spring of 1878, of the first two 
named, for better farming lands, viz. : 

The old Ponca Agency, sixty miles above 
Yankton, on the west bank of the Missouri 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 343 

River, for Spotted Tail; Yellow Medicine 
Creek, two hundred and seventy miles above 
Yankton, for Red Cloud; Crow Creek Agency, 
two hundred and thirty miles above Yankton, 
on the old Winnebago Reserve ; Cheyenne River 
Agency, three hundred and sixty-five miles above 
Yankton ; Standing Rock Agency, five hundred 
and twenty-nine miles above Yankton, and eighty 
miles below Bismark. 

On the 5th of September, Crazy Horse made 
an attempt to escape from Camp Robinson, but 
was recaptured. General Crook reported him 
as at the bottom of the trouble at both Red 
Cloud and Spotted Tail Agencies, and his men 
were distributed among other bands. He after- 
wards was killed in a needless encounter. 

On the 17th of October, General A. H. Terry 
and Hon. A. J. Lawrence had a conference with 
Sitting Bull at Fort Walsh, in the British pos- 
sessions, at which time he refused all overtures 
of peace, and asserted his purpose to dwell under 
the sway of the white queen mother. 

The year of 1877 closed w^ith comparative 
peace in the three Departments of the Plains. 

The record of operations in these departments 
is not complete, however, without some reference 
to another band of Indians, who have in part 
joined Sitting Bull in Canada, in part lurk in 
Montana, among the bands along the Northern 
border, and in part are gathered into Agencies, 



344 ABSARA KA. 

as the result of liard-fought battles, tedious wan 
derings, and extreme exposure on the field. 

The Nez Perces Indians belonged to Idaho, 
and as early as June, 1855, a treaty had been 
made, which allotted certain valleys to the lead- 
ing chiefs, fifty-eight of whom signed the agree- 
ment. Chief Joseph occupying the Wallowa Val- 
ley. An abstract of the Indian Commissioner's 
report for 1877 will give the following facts. 
The gold excitement, as ever, precipitated adven- 
turers westward, to the rescue of the gold from 
the lands of the Indians, and on the 10th of 
April, 1861, an agreement was made (not con- 
firmed by Congress), between Superintendent 
Geary, Agent Cain, and Indian Chief Lawyer, 
with forty-seven other chiefs, opening a portion 
of that country to the whites, as well as the In- 
dians, ^'■for mining purposes." In October, 1861, 
a town was laid out and a population of twelve 
hundred soon settled at their ease. 

In 1862 the annuities averaged only one blan- 
ket to six Indians, and two yards of calico to 
each person. On the 9th of June, 1863, a new 
treaty was made, reducing the Indian Reserve 
and excluding Wallowa Valley from its limits. 
" Chief Joseph," " Looking Glass," " Big Thun- 
der," "White Bird," and "Eagle from the 
Light," ignored the treaty and roamed at will 
through the valley. 

On the 26th of March, 1873, Hon. J. P. C. 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 345 

Shauks, Hon. T. W. Bennett, and Agent H. N. 
Reed, the first two, distinguislied for service in 
the civil war, were appointed to investigate and 
report on Indian affairs in Idaho. Superintend- 
ent T. Odeneal and Agent J. B. Menteith were 
also appointed special commissioners to confer 
with Joseph as to his removal to the Lapwai 
Reserve. The first-named commissioners im- 
peached the whites, for encroachments, even 
upon the reduced reservation, and the last- 
named decided it to be impracticable to effect 
the proposed removal. On the 16th of June, 
following, the President declared the "Wallowa 
Valley, a reservation for the roving bands sub- 
ject to their good behavior; but Congress made 
no appropriation to buy out the settlers' claims, 
and as Chief Joseph would not settle down 
quietly, the order was revoked by President 
Grant, June 18th, 1875.* 

In October, 1876, Hon. Z. Chandler, Secretary 
of the Interior Department, appointed D. H. 
Jerome, Esq., General 0. H. Howard, Major 
H. Clay Wood, and Messrs. "William Stickney 
and A. C. Barston, a board, to settle the troubles 
which were maturing toward violence and had 
already cost several lives. Their report was 
made December 1, 1876, and in May, 1877, 
councils were held, Chief Joseph, Looking 

* See note at end of chapter. 



346 ABSARAKA. 

Glass, and White Bird being present, and 
agreeing to go upon the reservation. On tha 
10th of May they had completed their exami- 
nation of various localities, and the commission 
were satisfied that trouble was at an end. 

" One day, however," says the annual report 
of the Indian Commissioners, " prior to the ex- 
piration of the time fixed for their removal 
(namely, June 14th, 1877), open hostilities by 
these Indians began, by the murder of twenty- 
one white men and women on White Bird Creek, 
near Mount Idaho, in revenge for the murder of one 
of their tribe. ^^ 

The troops at the disposal of General Howard 
were few in number, and every settlement was 
put in peril. Company F, 1st Cavalry, was at 
Fort Lapwai, but far from complete in strength. 
The rest of the regiment was scattered through 
Nevada, California, Washington Territory, and 
Oregon. The most accessible aid was from the 
7th Infantry, Colonel John Gibbon, which was 
distributed at Forts Shaw, Benton, Ellis, and 
Camp Baker, in Montana. General Howard, 
however, used with promptness his small force. 
Captain David Perry, 1st Cavalry, attacked the 
Indians at Hangman's Creek, near Spokane, 
seventy-five miles east of Lewiston, on the 17th 
of June, losing thirty-four men, either killed or 
wounded. The Lewiston volunteers, and Day- 
ton volunteers, and other local organizations. 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 347 

were at once called into service. Colonel Berry 
and Captain Whipple had a tight on the 4th of 
July, at Kamiah, near Cottonwood, on Solomon 
Eiver, losing thirteen men. On the 12th of July, 
General Howard, commanding in person, engaged 
the Lidians near the mouth of Cottonwood Creek, 
on the south side of Clearwater, losing eleven 
killed and twenty-six wounded. The Indians 
crossed the Cottonwood below Kamiah, and on 
the 19th of July were divided in opinion whether 
to prolong hostilities or surrender. A conference 
ensued. Red Heart and twenty-eight of his peo- 
ple gave themselves up, and Joseph manifested a 
similar purpose, but the influence of Wliite Bird 
constrained him to refuse submission to the 
terms proposed, and the non-treaty party fled to 
the Bitter Root Mountains, pursued by General 
Howard. 

On the 2d of August, General Sherman, then 
at Bozeman, gave orders for all possible prompt- 
ness in the efibrt to throw the Indians back upon 
General Howard, and prevent their escape to the 
buflTalo country of Montana, in the north. On the 
9th, Colonel Gibbon, of the 7th Infantry, attacked 
the Nez Perces at Big Hole Pass, in Montana, 
one hundred and twenty miles from Missoula, 
and nearly due west from Fort Ellis. His report 
of August 11th, reports his loss at seven officers 
and fifty-three men, killed and wounded. Among 
the killed were Captain Wm. Logan, 7th Infantry, 



348 ABSARAKA. 

and Lieutenant James H. Bradley, of tlie same 
regiment, formerly of the 18tli, whose trip to 
Fort Benton in 1866 is referred to on page 135 
of the Narrative. Colonel Gibbon was also 
wounded, and thus telegraphed to Governor 

Potts. 

Big Hole Pass, August 9th, 1877. 

Had a fight with the Nez Perces. We are here near the 
mouth of Big Hole Pass, with a large number of wounded 
men in want of everything ; food, clothing, medicine, and 
medical attendance. Send assistance at once. 

John Gibbon, Colonel Connnanding. 

Another despatch says : " The troops are en- 
trenching, and the Indians are leaving." "While 
Colonel Gibbon was thus trying to head off tha 
retreating Nez Perces, with an original force, all 
told, of only one hundred and ninety-one men, 
including thirty-four citizens, General Howard, 
with a small escort, pushed ahead of his column, 
marching on the 10th, fifty-three miles, notwith- 
standing the roughness of the country, leaving 
his command to follow. On the 12th he reached 
Colonel Gibbon, and telegraphed to General Mc- 
Dowell's headquarters : " Gibbon's command is 
in the best of spirits. The last of the Indians 
left last night. Shall continue the pursuit as soon 
as my command is up." As the result of this 
battle, eighty-nine bodies of Indians were found 
on the field, showing that their loss was equal to 
half the number of whites engaged. 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 349 

The retreat was southeast, nearly to Bannock 
City, thence southwest to Horse Prairie River, 
and on to old Fort Limai. Their only avenue 
of escape was to pass around Montana to the 
south, and then strike north, east of Fort Ellis, 
avoiding settlements and posts. Upon reaching 
Henry's Fork of Snake River (see map), they 
turned north toward Henry's Lake, which is 
southeast of Virginia City, and nearly at the 
source of Henry's Fork, with General Howard 
in close pursuit. At Camp Meadow, near the 
lake, they turned and attacked General Howard's 
column, inflicting a loss of one man killed and 
seven wounded, captured nearly a hundred horses, 
most of which were recovered, and on the 27th 
of August crossed the Yellowstone River ahove 
the falls, at the upper end of a caiion in the Na- 
tional Park, just north of the Sulphur Moun- 
tains, in the northwest part of Wyoming Terri- 
tory. They then took the Clark's Fork trail. 
Colonel Merritt, of the 5th Cavalry, with six 
companies of the 5th, and Russell's of the 3d 
Cavalry, and fifty Shoshones scouts, moved rapidly 
from the direction of the Goose Creek camp, to 
occupy the line of the Stinking River, and cut 
off their movement southward; and Colonel Saml. 
D. Sturgis, 7th Cavalry, left the New Crow 
Agency, at the Forks of Big and Little Rosehud, 
to cut off their movement to the north. 

General Sheridan, in ordering the recall of 

30 



350 ABSARAKA. 

Colonel Merritt, " unless his presence should be 
longer needed in that direction," says, that " in- 
stead of going up Clark's Fork, as was expected, 
Colonel Sturgis also went over to Stinking Water, 
and while he was doing so, the Indians cam<3 
down Clark's Fork and passed him," Still, on 
the 13th of September, he overtook and had ? 
jfight with them on Cailon Creek, Clark's Fork^ 
and pursued them closely on the 14th and 15th. 
On the latter date he reported the Indian loss at 
sixty, and that " nine hundred ponies had been 
dropped by the hostiles," and adds, " I am going 
ahead this morning, and propose to push them 
until they drop their whole herd, and I think 
they will abandon nearly their last horse. To- 
day, Howard, with infantry and artillery, was 
north of the Yellowstone, below Clark's Fork. 
The 16th Infantry is moving on Muscle Shell." 

At that time Colonel Sturgis had been com- 
pelled to abandon some of his own horses, — the 
men had lived for four days on mule meat, and 
very rapid pursuit was impossible.* 

The remaining I^ez Perces eluded further pun- 
ishment, successively crossed the Yellowstone, 
Muscle Shell, and Missouri, and safely entered 
the Bear Paw Mountains, south of Milk River, 
in the country of the Blackfeet and Bloods. 

On the 18th of September, Colonel Miles, hav- 
ing learned, on the evening of the 17th, from 
General Howard, then on Clark's Fork, that the 

* See note at end of chapter. 



yUfDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 35i 

!N"ez Perces had evaded the commands to the 
north of them, and were pushing northward, at 
once organized all the available force at his com- 
mand, for a movement to intercept, or pursue. 
The commission sent to have an interview with 
fitting Bull in the British Possessions, had 
already left, with an escort from the 2d and 7th 
Cavalry. This was overtaken, and the combined 
force moved on without delay. 

The march led directly to th e mouth of Muscle 
Shell, nearly northwest, ther ^e around the east- 
ern and northern bases of ths Little Rocky Moun- 
tains to Snake Creek, a fork of Milk River, the 
distance of two hundred and sixty-five miles 
being accomplished in ten days. The Missouri 
River, at mouth of Muscle Shell, was reached on 
the 23d, and a depot was established. On the 
25th Colonel Miles learned that the Indians 
actually crossed the Missouri on the 23d, at Cow 
Island, (See map No. 2.) The following is the 
substance of Colonel Miles's official report of this 
extraordinary expedition, so timely in its move- 
ments and so brilliant in its success. 

The train was left, to follow at leisure, and or 
the evening of the 29th the troops reached the 
northern end of Bear Paw Mountains, which the 
Nez Perces had approached from the south, and 
he was between them and Milk River. Entering 
the mountain range at four o'clock on the 30th, 
the Indian trail was struck "* pix a.m. near the 



352 ABSARAKA. 

head of Snake Eiver. The villao-e on Eao-le 
Creek was immediately charged in front, by the 
battalion of the 7th Cavalry under Captain Owen 
Hale, and the 5th Infantry, Captain Simon Sny- 
der. A battalion of the 2d Cavalry, Captain 
George L. Tyler, attacked in the rear and se- 
cured the stock, to the number of seven hundred 
horses, mules, and ponies. The Lidians took 
refuge in some deep ravines, and the firing was 
accurate and well kept up. To avoid the loss of 
life incident to storming these positions, from 
which they could not escape, the troops remained 
for four days on the alert, shelling the ravines 
and exchanging shots, whenever it was found 
effective. White flags were displayed, and com- 
munications were had with the Indians several 
times, but on the fifth they surrendered arms and 
ammunition, and the contest was at an end. 
Looking Glass and several of the chiefs, includ- 
ing a brother of Joseph and twenty-five Indians, 
had been killed, and forty-six Indians were 
wounded. " A severe storm of snow and wind, 
which set in on the 1st, added greatly to the hard- 
ships," writes Colonel Miles, " which have been 
borne without murmuring." The casualties of 
the command were Captain Owen Hale and 
Second Lieutenant Joseph "W. Biddle, both of 
7th Cavalry, killed ; Captain Miles Moylan and 
Edward S. Godfrey, 7th Cavalry, First Lieu- 
tenant Geo. W. Baird, Adjutant, and Lieutenant 



INDIAN AFFAIRS ON THE PLAINS. 353 

Henry Romeyn, 5tli Infantry, wounded. Enlisted 
men, nineteen killed and forty-two wounded. 

Companies A, D, and K, 7tli Cavalry, had ten 
sergeants among tlieir casualties. 

It is stated by the Commissioner of Indian 
Affairs, in his report for 1877, " That Joseph 
observed the rules of civilized warfare, and did 
not mutilate dead enemies," whereas Red Cloud 
and his bands, in 1866, in their first resentment 
of the invasion of the Big Horn country, com- 
mitted atrocities upon living captives of a kind 
unrecorded elsewhere in human history. 

The Nez Perces campaign grew out of wrongs 
inflicted upon their people. It is the old story ; 
and after all due resentment is expended upon 
Joseph, for murders committed by his band in 
the immediate vicinity of their old home in 
Idaho, this war must be classed among the in- 
evitable results of violated treaties and original 
trespass upon the red man's rights. 

Note. — General Shanks commanded the 7th Indiana Cav- 
alry during the civil war, and states that " Joseph's party was 
thoroughly disciplined ; that they rode at full gallop along 
the mountain side in a steady formation by fours ; formed 
twos, at a given signal, with perfect precision, to cress a 
narrow bridge ; then galloped into line, reined in to a sudden 
halt, and dismounted with as much system as if regulars." 

Of Joseph's character he gives these facts, as to the inter- 
view with him : 

" I do not fight women," said Joseph. " It is not their 
tiult that they are here." 

30* 



:i54 ABSARAKA. 

Placing his hand on his breast, he said, " This is my body 
It came out of the earth. Do you believe it? Then the eart 
is my mother, and I shall return to her. Would you sell yoa 
mother? I will never sell my mother." 

General Shanks put this question to Joseph: "Do yoi 
want schools and school-houses on the Wallowa Reservation ?' 
Answer by Joseph. " No. We do not want schools ot 
school-houses on the Wallowa Eeservation." 
(Question. " Why do you not want schools ?" 
Answer. " They will teach us to have churches." 
(Question. " Why do you not want churches ?" 
Answer. " They will teach us to quarrel about God, as the 
Catholics and Protestants do on the Nez Perces Reservation, 
and at other places. We do not want to learn that. We may 
quarrel with men, sometimes, about things on this earth, but 
we never quarrel about God. We do not want to learn that." 

Note. — Copy of Official Report of General S. D. Sturgis 
(Colonel 7th Cavalry) received May 1st, too late for this 
edition. His command, made up largely of raw men, to 
Bupply the terrible waste of the Custer massacre, marched 
fifteen hundred miles during the Nez Perces campaign, over- 
taking Colonel Miles just after tlie battle at Snake River. His 
testimony to " their patience under exposure, fatigue, hunger, 
and peril" is but another illustration of the character of ser- 
vice on the Plains. 



HONOR TO WHOM HONOR. 355 



CHAPTER XXXVI. 

HONOR TO WHOM HONOR. 

This outline of tlie struggle of the Indian to 
retain the vast plains which the buifalo peopled, 
and to live as his fathers lived, has only touched 
the prominent facts and manifestations which 
from year to year demanded the serious thought 
of the American people. The single instances 
where cabins, ranches, and emigrant trains have 
been despoiled are not to be easily counted ; but 
far more numerous have been the desolated lodges 
of the red man, whose life went out at the will 
of the white man's avarice, and of which wrongs 
history will speak as of needless robbery and 
cruel wrong. Many have been the marchings 
and thirstings, the hungerings and dyings of the 
obedient soldier, contending, in the name of the 
State, to dispossess the savage of the home of 
the savage, and surely there have been atrocities 
which demanded of the white man the punish- 
ment of the evil-doer; but far more have been 
the starvings and the flights and tlie extinguish- 
ments which have visited the Indian, for the 



356 ABSARAKA. 

offence of living, and loving to live, where the 
Great Spirit gave him breath. 

And yet through all this chain of linked horrors 
and ceaseless conflict there is a justly-deserved 
tribute due to the American soldier, who, under 
the most painful of all pressure, — that of fighting 
while conscious that an inferior race is subjected 
to his disposal, — almost without exception, has 
restricted his work to the necessity of the hour, 
and mingled with war itself the sincere effort to 
secure to his savage enemy some avenue to peace. 
It was not traffic at one thousand per cent, of 
profit, nor the pursuit of gold, much less the 
glory of shooting red men as game, that took 
the soldier to the Plains; and aside from the 
protection of travel, or peaceful homes, and of 
legitimate traders, when such there were, he had 
no treasure, and little pleasure, in his mission. 
The succession of events already given, as the 
proper sequel to the personal Narrative of this 
volume, has no more prominent fact than this 
assurance of history to the credit of the Amer- 
ican army. 

Among the citizens of the Republic whose 
sympathies have been quick to feel for the red 
man, and equally earnest to labor in his rescue, 
few have been more sincere and unselfish than 
Hon. George W. Manypenny, of Columbus, 
Ohio, the President of the Commission appointed 
by President Grant to negotiate with Red Cloud, 



HONOR TO WHOM HONOR. 357 

and otlier Indians, for the final surrender of the 
Black Hills and the country adjacent. 
-''In his report of December 18th, 1876, ad- 
dressed to the Hon. J. Q. Smith, Commissioner 
of Indian Affairs, he cites the following from the 
report of Generals Sherman, Harney, Terry and 
Augur, and Messrs. Henderson, Tappan, and 
Sanborn, made in connection with the treaties 
of 1868 : 

The Indian, although a barbarian, is yet a man, susceptible 
to those feelings which respond to magnanimity and kind- 
ness. The injunction to do good to those that hate us is not 
confined to race, but is broad as humanity itself. This truth, 
for the practical man seeking a solution of the troubles, will 
serve a better purpose than whole pages of theories of Indian 
character. 

" These words," says Colonel Manypenny, " are 
words which ought to be written in letters of 
gold, and read by every citizen." 

From the same report he quotes again : 

If the lands of the white man are taken, civilization justi- 
fies him in resisting the invader. Civilization does more 
than this, — it brands him as a coward and a slave if he sub- 
mits to the wrong. Here civilization made its own compact, 
and guaranteed the rights of the weaker party. It did not 
stand by the guarantee. The treaty was broken ; but not by 
the savage^/^f the savage resists, civilization, with the Ten 
Commandments in one hand and the sword in the other, de- 
mands his immediate extermination. That he goes to war is not 
astonishing ; he is often compelled to do so. Wrongs are borne 
by him in silence that never fail to drive civilized man to 
deeds of violence. Among civilized men, war generally springs 



358 ABSARAKA. 

from a sense of injustice. The best possible way then to avoid 
war is to do no act of injustice. When we learn tliat the same 
rule holds good with Indians, the chief diiBculty is removed. 
But it is said that our wars with them have been almost con- 
stant. Have we been uniformly unjust? "We answer, un- 
hesitatingly, " Yes." 

" These words," writes Colonel Manypenny, 
" are words wrung from brave men, who had 
grown gray in the service of the country. They 
were compelled to confess the nation's shame by 
the facts which they themselves had investi- 
gated." 

With such sentiments of the General of the 
army, and of two of the Department com- 
manders, and of General Harney, generous as 
he is brave, and eminent above all other living 
men for experience in frontier war, the army of 
the Plains has been in substantial accord. 

It would require a full volume to embody the 
details of the engagements referred to, and to 
render just tribute to detachment commanders 
who achieved real success in the tiresome ordeal 
of frontier life. That remains for future de- 
velopment. The immediate purpose has been 
realized, if substantial clearness has been given 
to the progress of the Indian question towards 
its final disposal. Of the chiefs who bore part 
in the campaign of 1866, Spotted Tail and Stand- 
ing Elk have remained true to their first treaty 
obligation ; and Red Cloud, who so stoutly con- 



HONOR TO WHOM HONOR. 35 p 

tended for his legal rights in that opening year 
of the war, has vindicated his pledge to abide 
by contracts since made. Others have dropped 
out of the record as it progressed. 

Of the officers of the 7th Cavalry whose career 
embraced active operations in each of the De- 
partments of the Plains, it was the lot to share 
in the final battle with the Nez Perces at Bear 
Paw mountain ; and there, some who had passed 
unscathed through the battles of the " Washita," 
" Beaver Creek," " The Big Horn," and " The 
Little Horn," laid down their lives with honor, 
as if the whole regiment was destined to share 
in the monumental record of this protracted war. 
As a general rule, except in quoting extracts 
from reports and other documents, the lineal 
rank has been given, so as not to confuse the 
reader by mingling the lineal and brevet rank 
in the recital. The appendix of casualties gives 
both, as found in the Army Register. Such 
legitimate material as has been accessible has 
been used as briefly as possible, and in equal 
justice to all, 

.• It remains only to notice the faithful co-opera- 
tion and unvarying integrity of the Mountain 
and River Crow Indians, whose home, so long 
since stolen by the Sioux, has been the battle- 
field of so many vital issues. 

Ab-sa-ra-ka — the " Land that the Crow Flies 
Over," " The Home of the Crows" — is to be 



360 ABSARAKA. 

the peaceful home of the white man, and if the 
end of inter-tribal conflicts shall bring with it 
also the earnest purpose of the American people 
to deserve the friendship of all the red race, and 
seek their enlightenment and happiness, the 
blood shed, and the agony endured, will have 
some recompense, in justice done to the warrior 
race thus rescued, though the justice be tardy 
and the cost be vast. / 



APPENDIX. 



The following extract, from Senate Document No. 13, 
1861, furnishes that portion relating to the massacre 
near Fort Phil Kearney in 1866, being Report of the 
Special Commission sent to investigate the cause of 
that disaster. 

Disposition and Conduct of the Indians about Fort Phil 
Kearney, and the Causes of the same. 

The main object sought to be secured by the treaty of 
Laramie of July, a.d. 1866, was the opening of a new route 
to Montana from Fort Laramie, via Bridger's Ferry and the 
head-waters of the Powder, Tongue, and Big Horn Rivers. 
This country was occupied by the Ogallalla and Minnecon- 
joux bands of Sioux Indians and the northern Cheyenne and 
Arrapahoe tribes, and the mountain Crows. 

The region through which the road was to pass and does 
pass is the most attractive and valuable to Indians. It 
abounds with game, flocks of mountain sheep, droves of elk 
and deer, and herds of buffalo range through and live in this 
country, and the Indians with propriety call it their last best 
hunting-grounds. All these Indians were reluctant to allow 
the proposed road to pass through these hunting-grounds, 
31 ("361) 



362 ABSARAKA. 

but all would reluctantly assent to this for so liberal an equiv- 
alent as the government was ready to give. The Indians were 
required further to stipulate that the government should have 
the right to establish one or more military posts on this road 
in their country. All the Indians occupying it refused thus 
to stipulate, and through the chiefs, headmen, and soldiers 
protested against the establishment of any military post on 
their hunting-grounds along that road north of Fort Eeno. 

While negotiations were going on with Red Cloud and 
their leading chiefs to ind'ice them to yield to the govern- 
ment the right to peaceably establish these military posts, 
which right they persistently refused to yield, saying that it 
was asking too much of their people — asking all they had — 
for it would drive away all the game. Colonel H. B. Car- 
rington, 18th United States Infantry, with about seven 
hundred ofBcers and men, arrived at Laramie, en route to 
their country to establish and occupy military posts along 
the Montana road, pursuant to General Orders No. 33, Head- 
quarters Department of the Missouri, March 10, 1866, Major- 
General Pope commanding. The destination and purpose of 
Colonel Carrington and his command were communicated to 
their chiefs. They seemed to construe this as a determination 
on the part of the government to occupy their country by 
military posts, even without their consent or that of their 
people, and as soon as practicable withdrew from the council 
with their adherents, refusing to accept any presents from 
the commission, returned to their country, and with a strong 
force of warriors commenced a vigorous and relentless war 
against all whites who came into it, both citizens and soldiers. 

Quite a large number of Indians, who did not occupy the 
country along this road, were anxious to make a treaty and 
remain at peace. Some of this class had for a long time re- 
sided near Fort Laramie. Others (Brulfes) occupied the 
White Earth River valley and the Sand Hills south of that 
river. 

The commissioners created and appointed several of the 



APPEND IX. 3G3 

leading warriors of these Indians chiefs, viz., Big Mouth, 
Spotted Tail, Swift Bear, and Two Strikes. A portion of 
these Indians have remained near Fort Laramie, and a por- 
tion of them on the Republican fork of the Kansas River, 
and have strictly complied with their treaty stipulations. 

The number of Sioux Indians who considered themselves 
bound by the treaty and have remained at peace is about two 
thousand, while the Minneconjoux and a portion of the Ogal- 
lalla and Brulfe bands, the northern Cheyennes and Arrapa- 
hoes, with a few Sans Arcs, numbering in the aggregate 
about six hundred lodges, remained in their old country and 
went to war under the auspices of their old chiefs. 

We therefore report that all the Sioux Indians occupying 
the country about Fort Phil Kearney have been in a state of 
war against the whites since the 20th day of June, a.d. 1866, 
and that they have waged and carried on this war for the 
purpose of defending their ancient possessions and the pos- 
sessions acquired by them from the Crow Indians by con- 
quest after bloody wars, from invasion and occupation by 
the whites. 

This war has been carried on by the Indians with most ex- 
traordinary vigor and unwonted success. During the time 
from July 2Gth, the day on which Lieutenant V/ands's train 
was attacked, to the 21st day of December, on which Brevet 
Lieutenant-Colonel Fetterman, with his command of eighty 
ofBcers and men, was overpowered and massacred, they killed 
ninety-one enlisted men and five officers of our array, and 
killed fifty-eight citizens and wounded twenty more, and cap- 
tured and drove away three hundred and six oxen and cows, 
three hundred and four mules, and one hundred and sixty-one 
horses. During this time they appeared in front of Fort Phil 
Kearney, making hostile demonstrations and committing hos- 
tile acts, fifty-one different times, and attacked nearly every 
train and person that attempted to pass over the Montana 
road. 



364 ABSARAKA. 



Massacre of Brevet Lieutenant- Colonel Fetterman's Party, 
and the Causes which led to it. 

General Orders No. 33, Headquarters Department of Mis- 
souri, dated March 10, 1866, directed that two new military 
posts shoulcT be established on this new route to Montana — 
one • near the base of the Big Horn Mountain," the other 
" on or near the Upper Yellowstone" — and designated the 
2d battalion of the 18th Infantry to garrison the three 
posts on this route, and created the Mountain District, 
Department of the Platte, and directed the colonel of the 
regiment (Colonel H. B. Carrington) to take post at Fort 
Eeno and command the district, which included all the troops 
and gar»isons on this route. 

Geneiai Orders No. 7, Headquarters Department of the 
Platte, June 23, 1866, directed that the 2d Battalion 18th 
Infantry should take post as follows : Two companies at 
Fort Reno, on Powder River, two companies about eighty 
miles nearly south of Reno, on the waters of Powder or 
Tongue River, which post should be known as Fort Philip 
Kearney, and two companies at the crossing of the Big Horn 
River on the same road, and about seventy miles beyond 
Fort Philip Kearney, to be known as Fort C. F. Smith, and 
directed that the colonel of the regiment should take post at 
Fort Philip Kearney, and command the " mountain district." 

The orders above referred to were issued with the express 
understanding, apparently, that this road to Montana was to 
be opened through the Indian country by compact or treaty 
with the Indians occupying it, and not by conquest and the 
exercise of arbitrary power on the part of the government. 
Hence Colonel Carrington's instructions looked mainly to 
the duty of selecting and building the two new forts, Philip 
Kearney and C. F. Smith, and the command assigned was 
only sufficient for this purpose and properly garrisoning the 
posts. This command numbered in all about seven hundred 



APPENDIX. 305 

men, five hundred of whom were new recruits, and twelve 
officers, including district commander and staff. The com- 
manding officer, Colonel Carrington, could not and did no* 
fail to see at once, that although his command was entirely 
sufficient to erect the new forts, build the barracks, ware- 
houses, and stables, and make preparations for winter, and 
properly garrison his posts, and could protect emigration 
from the small thieving parties of Indians, it was still entirely 
inadequate to carry on systematic and aggressive war against 
a most powerful tribe of Indians, fighting to maintain posses- 
sion and control of their own country, in addition to those 
other duties. This officer carried the orders above referred 
to into efiect with promptness and zeal, organizing the mount- 
ain district June 28, 1866, establishing Fort Philip Kearney 
on the 15th of July, and Fort C. P. Smith on the 3d day of 
August, and as early as the 31st day of July informed Gen- 
eral P. St. George Cooke, the department commander, that 
the status of Indians in that country was one of war, and re- 
quested reinforcements sent to him, and two days previously 
had telegraphed the adjutant-general of the army for Indian 
auxiliaries, and additional force of his own regiment. 

On the 9th of August, General Cooke, commanding de- 
partment of the Platte, informed Colonel Carrington thut 
Lieutenant-Geueral Sherman ordered the posts in his, Colo- 
nel Carrington's district, supported as much as possible, and 
announced a regiment coming from St. Louis. 

No auxiliaries were assigned, and no reinforcements came 
until November, when company 0, 2d United States Cav- 
alry, reached Fort Kearney, sixty strong, armed with Spring- 
field rifles and Star carbines. In December, about ninety 
recruits joined the battalion in the mountain district, a 
portion of whom were assigned to a company stationed at 
Fort Phil Kearney. No other reinforcements were sent to 
the district. Approved requisitions for ammunition were not 
answered. The command at Fort C. F. Smith was reduced 
to ten rounds per man ; the command at Fort Phil Kearney 
31* 



366 ABSARAKA. 

to forty-five rounds per man, and the command at Fort Reno 
to thirty rounds per man. Recruits could not practice any 
in firing. Little time could be allowed from fatigue duty for 
drill, and with but twelve ofiicers and three posts little could 
have been done in drilling recruits, if time could have been 
allowed. 

The result of all this was that the troops were in no con- 
dition to fight successful battles with Indians or other foes, 
and this from no fault of Colonel Carrington ; and I am aston- 
ished at the zeal with which they fought, and the damage 
they inflicted, December 21st. 

The numerous demonstrations and attacks made by Indians 
prior to the 6th of December seemed to have been made 
for the sole purpose of capturing stock, picket posts, and 
small parties of soldiers who might venture beyond the cover 
of the garrison, and of annoying and checking the wood train 
constantly drawing material for the new forts. 

On the morning of December 6th the wood train was at- 
tacked, a common occurrence, about two miles from the fort, 
and forced to corral and defend itself. Brevet Lieutenant- 
Colonel Fetterman, with a command of seventeen mounted 
infantry and thirty-five cavalry, moved out to relieve the wood 
train, and drive off the Indians, and Colonel Carrington, with 
twenty-five mounted infantry, moved out for the purpose of 
cutting off the Indians from retreat, and destroying them. 
On this day, at a point on Peno Creek, about five miles from 
the fort, the Indians, the second time after the fort was estab- 
lished, made a stand and strong resistance, and nearly sur- 
rounded Colonel Fettermau's party. The infantry obeyed 
orders and behaved well. The cavalry, with the exception 
of ten enlisted men, disobeyed the orders of Colonel Fetter- 
man, and fled with great precipitancy from this portion of 
the field. As the cavalry retreated, the Indians made a great 
display and every effort to create a panic with the infantry, 
but Colonel Fetterman, Lieutenant Wands, and Lieutenant 
Brown succeeded in keeping this small body of infantry cool- 



APPENDIX. 367 

and by reserving their fire for proper range, rescued it from 
annihilation, and made a junction with Colonel Carrington's 
party, on the east side of Peno Creek. Lieutenant Bing- 
ham, after leaving Colonel Fettermau's party, with Lieu- 
tenant Grummond, a sergeant from Colonel Carrington's 
command, and two men from his own, without the knowledge 
or orders of any of his superiors, pursued into an ambuscade, 
more than two miles from the main party, a single Indian 
who was on foot just in front of their horses, and Lieutenant 
Bingham and the sergeant were there killed. The results 
of this day's fighting, although not of a decidedly success- 
ful character to the Indians, were such as naturally to induce 
the belief on their part that by proper management and 
effort they could overpower and destroy any force that could 
be sent out from the fort to fight them, and no doubt at this 
time resolved to make the effort the first auspicious day, 
and postponed their proceedings from the new to the full 
moon. In the mean time everything was quiet about the 
fort, although they often appeared on the surrounding hills. 

On the morning of December 21st the picket at the signal 
station signaled to the fort that the wood train was attacked 
by Indians, and coralled, and the escort fighting. This was 
not far from 11 o'clock a.m., and the train was about two 
miles from the fort, and moving toward the timber. Almost 
immediately a few Indian pickets appeared on one or two of 
the surrounding heights, and a party of about twenty near 
the Big Piney, where the Montana road crosses the same, 
within howitzer range of the fort. Shells were thrown 
among them from the artillery in the fort, and they fled. 

The following detail, viz., fifty men and two officers from 
the four difierent infantry companies, and twenty-six cavalry- 
men and one ofiSce.*, was mude by Colonel Carrington. The 
entire force formed in good order and was placed under com- 
mand of Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Fetterman, who received 
the following orders from Colonel Carrington : "Support the 
wood train, relieve it, and report to me. Do not engage or 



368 ABSARAKA. 

pursue Indians at its expense ; under no circumstances pur- 
sue over Lodge Trail Ridge." These instructions were re- 
peated by Colonel Carrington in a loud voice, to the com- 
mand when in motion, and outside the fort, and again deliv- 
ered in substance through Lieutenant Wands, officer of the 
day, to Lieutenant Grummond, commanding cavalry detach- 
ment, who was requested to communicate them again to 
Colonel Fetterman. 

Colonel Fetterman moved out rapidly to the right of the 
wood road, for the purpose no doubt of cutting off the re- 
treat of the Indians then attacking the train. As he ad- 
vanced across the Piney, a few Indians appeared in his front 
and on his flanks, and continued flitting about him, beyond 
rifle range, till they disappeared beyond Lodge Trail Ridge. 
When he was on Lodge Trail Ridge, the picket signaled the 
fort that the Indians had retreated from the train ; the train 
had broken corral and moved on toward the timber. 

The train made the round trip, and was not again disturbed 
that day. 

At about fifteen minutes before 12 o'clock Colonel Fetter- 
man's command had reached the crest of Lodge Trail Ridge, 
■was deployed as skirmishers, and at a halt. Without regard 
to orders, for reasons that the silence of Colonel Fetterman 
now prevents us from giving, he, with the command, in a few 
moments disappeared, having cleared the ridge, still moving 
north. Firing at once commenced, and increased in rapidity 
till, in about fifteen minutes and at about 12 o'clock m., it 
was a continuous and rapid fire of musketry, plainly audible 
at the fort. Assistant Surgeon Hines, having been ordered 
to join Fetterman, found Indians on a part of Lodge Trail 
Ridge not visible from the fort, and could not reach the force 
there struggling to preserve its existence. As soon as the 
firing became rapid Colonel Carrington ordered Captain Ten 
Eyck, with about seventy-six men, being all the men for duty 
in the fort, and two wagons with ammunition, to join Colonel 
Fetterman immediately. lie moved out and advanced rapidly 



APPENDIX. 369 

toward the point from which the sound of firing proceeded, 
but did not move by so short a route as he might have done. 
The sound of firing continued to be heard during his advance, 
diminishing in rapidity and number of shots till he reached a 
high summit overlooking the battle-field, at about a quarter 
before 1 o'clock, when one or two shots closed all sound of 
conflict. 

Whether he could have reached the scene of action by 
marching over the shortest route as rapidly as possible in 
time to have relieved Colonel Fetterman's command, I am 
unable to determine. 

Immediately after Captain Ten Eyck moved out, and by 
orders of Colonel Carrington issued at the same time as the 
orders detailing that officer to join Colonel Fetterman, the 
quartermaster's employees, convalescents, and all others ia 
garrison, were armed and provided with ammunition, and 
held in readiness to reinforce the troops fighting, or defend 
the garrison. 

Captain Ten Eyck reported, as soon as he reached a sum- 
mit commanding a view of the battle-field, that the Peno 
valley was full of Indians ; that he could see nothing of Col- 
onel Fetterman's party, and requested that a howitzer should 
be sent to him. The howitzer was not sent. The Indians, 
who at first beckoned him to come down, now commenced 
retreating, and Captain Ten Eyck, advancing to a point where 
the Indians had been standing in a circle, found the dead 
naked bodies of Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Fetterman, Cap- 
tain Brown, and about sixty-five of the soldiers of their com- 
mand. At this point there were no indications of a severe 
struggle. All the bodies lay in a space not exceeding thirty- 
five feet in diameter. No empty cartridge shells were about, 
and there were some full cartridges. A few American horses 
lay dead a short distance off", all with their heads toward the 
fort. This spot was by the roadside, and beyond the summit 
of a hill rising to the east of Peno Creek. The road, after 
••ising this hill, follows this ridge along for about half or three- 



370 ABSARAKA. 

quarters of a mile, and then descends abruptly to Peno 
Creek. At about half the distance from where these bodies 
lay to the point where the road commences to descend to 
Peno Creek was the dead body of Lieutenant Grumraond ; 
and still farther on, at the point where the road commences 
to descend to Peno Creek, were the dead bodies of the three 
citizens and four or five of the old, long-tried and experienced 
soldiers. A great number of empty cartridge shells were on 
the ground at this point, and more than fifty lying on the 
ground about one of the dead citizens, who used a Henry 
rifle. Within a few hundred yards in front of this position 
ten Indian ponies lay dead, and there were sixty-five pools of 
dark and clotted blood. No Indian ponies or pools of blood 
were found at any other point. Our conclusion, therefore, is 
that the Indians were massed to resist Colonel Fetterman's 
advance along Peno Creek on both sides of the road ; that 
Colonel Fetterman formed his advanced lines on the summit 
of the hill overlooking the creek and valley, with a reserve 
near where the large number of dead bodies lay; that the 
Indians, in force of from fifteen to eighteen hundred warriors, 
attacked him vigorously in this position, and were success- 
fully resisted by him for half an hour or more; that the 
command then being short of ammunition, and seized with 
panic at this event and the great numerical superiority of 
the Indians, attempted to retreat toward the fort ; that the 
mountaineers and old soldiers, who had learned that a move- 
ment from Indians, in an engagement, was equivalent to death, 
remained in their first position, and were killed there ; that im- 
mediately upon the commencement of the retreat the Indians 
charged upon and surrounded the party, who could not now 
be formed by their officers, and were immediately killed. Only 
six men of the whole command were killed by balls, and two 
of these Lieutenant-Colonel Fetterman and Captain Brown, 
no doubt inflicted this death upon themselves, or each other, 
by their own hands, for both were shot through the left tem- 
ple, and powder burnt into the skin and flesh about the 



APPENDIX. 371 

wound. These officers had also oftentimes asserted that they 
would not be taken alive by Indians. 

In the critical examination we have given this painful and 
horrible affair, we do not find, of the immediate participants 
any officer living deserving of censure; and even if evidence 
justifies it, it would ill become us to speak evil of or censure 
those dead who sacrificed life struggling to maintain the au- 
thority and power of the government and add new luster to 
our arms and fame. 

Of those who have been more remotely connected with the 
events that led to the massacre, we have endeavored to report 
so specifically as to enable yourself and the President, who 
have much official information that we cannot have, to de- 
termine where the censure must fall. The difficulty, "in a 
nutshell," was that the commanding officer of the district 
was furnished no more troops or supplies for this state of war 
than had been provided and furnished him for a state of pro- 
found peace. 

In regions where all was peace, as at Laramie in Novem- 
ber, twelve companies were stationed ; while in regions where 
all was war, as at Phil Kearney, there were only five com- 
panies allowed. 



372 ABSARAKA. 



II- 

[COLONEL CARRINGTON'S OFFICIAL REPORT OF THE PHIL 
KEARNEY MASSACRE. 

Headquarters Post, Fort Philip Kearney, 
Dacotah Territory, January 3d, 1867. 

Assistant Adjutant- General, Department of the Platte, Omaha, 
Nebraska Territory. 

I respectfully state the facts of fight with Indians on the 
21st ultimo. This disaster had the eflFect to confirm my judg- 
ment as to the hostility of Indians, and solemnly declares, by 
its roll of dead and the numbers engaged, that my declara- 
tions, from my arrival at Laramie in June, were not idle con- 
jecture, but true. 

It also declares that in Indian warfare there must be per- 
fect coolness, steadiness, and judgment. This contest is in 
their best and almost their last hunting-grounds. They can- 
not be whipped or punished by some little dash after a hand- 
ful, nor by mere resistance of offensive movements. They 
must be subjected, and made to respect and fear the whites. 

It also declares with equal plainness that my letter from 
Fort Laramie, as to the absolute failure of the treaty, so far 
as related to my command, was true. 

It also vindicates every report from my pen, and every 
measure I have taken to secure defensive and tenable posts 
on this line. 

It vindicates my administration of the Mountain District, 

1 



APPENDIX. 373 

Department of the Platte, and asserts that the confidence re 
posed in me by Lieutenant-General Sherman has been fully 
met. 

It vindicates my application so often made, for reinforce 
ments, and demonstrates the fact that if I had received those 
assured to me, by telegram and letter, I could have kept up 
communications, and opened a safe route for emigrants next 
spring. 

It proves correct my report of fifteen hundred lodges of 
hostile Indians on Tongue River, not many hours' ride from 
this post. 

It no less declares that while there has been partial success 
in impromptu dashes, the Indian, now desperate and bitter, 
looks upon the rash white man as a sure victim, no less than 
he does a coward, and that the United States must come to 
the deliberate resolve to send an army equal to a fight with 
the Indians of the Northwest. 

Better to have the expense, at once, than to have a linger- 
ing, provoking war for years. It must be met, and the time 
is just now. 

I respectfully refer to my ofiicial reports and correspond- 
ence from Department Headquarters for verification of the 
foregoing propositions, and proceed to the details of Fetter- 
man's Massacre. 

On the morning of the 21st ultimo, at about eleven o'clock, 
my picket on Pilot Hill reported the wood-train corralled 
and threatened by Indians on Sullivant Hills, about a mile 
and a half from the fort. 

A few shots were heard. Indians also appeared in the 
brush at the crossing of Peney by the Virginia City road. 

Upon tendering to Brevet Major Powell the command of 
Company C, U. S. Cavalry, then without an officer, but which 
he had been drilling, Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Fetterman 
claimed by rank to go out. I acquiesced, giving him the 
men of his own company that were for duty, and a portion 
of Company C, 2d Battalion. 18th U. S. Infantry. Lieute- 



374 ABSARAKA. 

nant G. W. Grummond, who had commanded the mounted 
Infantry, requested to take out the Cavalry. He did so. 

In the previous skirmish, Lieutenant Grummond vv^as barely 
saved from the disaster that befell Lieutenant Bingham by 
timely aid. (See page 196 of "Absaraka.") 

Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Fetterman also was well ad- 
monished, as well as myself, that we were fighting brave and 
desperate enemies, who had sought to make up, by cunning 
and deceit, all the advantage which the white man gains by 
intelligence and better arms. 

My instructions were therefore peremptory and explicit. 
I knew the ambition of each to win honor, but being unpre- 
pared for large aggressive action through want of adequate 
force, now fully demonstrated, I looked to continuance of 
timber supplies, to prepare for more troops, as the one prac- 
tical duty ; hence, two days before, Major Powell, sent out to 
cover the train under similar circumstances, simply did that 
duty, when he could have had a fight to any extent. 

The day before, viz., the 20th ultimo, I went myself to the 
pinery, and built a bridge of forty-five feet span, to expedite 
the passage of wagons from the woods into open ground. 
Hence my instructions to Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Fetter- 
man, viz. : " Support the wood-train, relieve it, and report to 
me. Do not engage or pursue Indians at its expense ; under 
no circumstances pursue over the Ridge, viz. : Lodge trail 
Ridge, as per map in your possession." (For map, see page 
204, "Absaraka.") 

To Lieutenant Grummond I gave orders to "report to 
Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Fetterman, implicitly obey orders, 
and not leave him." 

Before the command left, I instructed Lieutenant A. II. 
Wands, my Regimental Quartermaster and acting Adjutant, 
to repeat these orders. He did so. 

Fearing still that the spirit of ambition might over-rido 
prudence, as my refusal to permit sixty mounted men and 
forty citizens to go for several days down Tongue River val- 



APPENDIX. 375 

ley after villages had been unfavorably regarded by Brevet 
Lieutenant-Colonel Fetterman and Captain Brown, I crossed 
the parade, and from a sentry platform halted the Cavalry, 
and again repeated my precise orders. I knew that the In- 
dians had, for some days, returned each time with increased 
numbers, to feel our strength and decoy detachments to their 
sacrifice, and believed that to foil their purpose was actual 
victory, until reinforcements should an-ive and my prepara- 
tions were complete. I was right. 

Just as the command left, five Indians reappeared at the 
crossing. The glass revealed others in the thicket, having 
the apparent object of determining the watchfulness of the 
garrison, or cutting ofi" any small party that should move 
out. A case shot dismounted one and developed nearly 
thirty, who broke for the hills and ravines to the North. 

In half an hour the picket reported that the wood-train 
had broken corral and moved on to the pinery. No report 
came from the detachment. It was composed of eighty-one, 
ofiicers and men, including two citizens, all well armed ; the 
Cavalry having the new carbine, while the detachment of 
Infantry was of choice men, the pride of their companies. 

At twelve o'clock firing was heard toward Peno Creek, 
beyond Lodge Trail Ridge. A few shots were followed by 
constant shots, not to be counted. Captain Ten Eyck was 
immediately dispatched with Infantry, and the remaining 
Cavalry, and two wagons, and orders to join Colonel Fetter- 
man at all hazards. The men moved promptly and on the 
run, but within little more than half an hour from the first 
shot, and just as the supporting party reached the hill over- 
looking the scene of action, all firing ceased. 

Captain Ten Eyck sent a mounted orderly back with the 
report, that he could see or hear nothing of Fetterman, but 
that a body of Indians on the road below him were cliallcng- 
ing him to come down, while larger bodies were in all the 
valleys for several miles around. Moving cautiously forward 
with the wagons (evidently supposed by the enemy to be 



376 ABSARAKA. 

guns, as mounted men were in advance), he rescued from the 
spot where the enemy had been nearest, forty-nine bodies, 
includins; those of Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Fetterman and 
Captain F. II. Brown. The latter went out without my con- 
sent or knowledge, fearless to fight Indians with any adverse 
odds, and determined to kill one at least before joining his 
Company. 

Captain Ten Eyck fell back slowly, followed, but not 
pressed by the enemy, reaching the Post without loss. The 
following day, finding general doubt as to the success of an 
attempt to recover other bodies, but believing that failure to 
rescue them would dishearten the command and encourage 
the Indians, who are so particular in this regai'd, I took 
eighty men and went to the scene of action, leaving a picket 
to advise me of any movement in the rear, and to keep signal 
communication with the garrison. 

The scene of action told its own story. 

The road on the little ridge where the final stand took 
place, was strewn with arrows, arrow-heads, scalp-poles, and 
broken shafts of spears. The arrows that were spent harm- 
lessly, from all directions, show that the command was sud- 
denly overwhelmed, surrounded, and cut off while in retreat. 
Not an officer or man survived ! A few bodies were found afc 
the north end of the divide over which the road runs, just 
beyond Lodge Trail Ridge. 

Nearly all were heaped near four rocks, at the point near- 
est the Fort, these rocks, enclosing a space about six feet 
square, having been the last refuge for defence. Here were 
also a few unexpended rounds of Spencer cartridge. 

Fetterman and Brown had each a revolver-shot in the left 
temple. As Brown always declared that he would reserve a 
shot for himself, as a last resort, so I am convinced that these 
two brave men fell, each by the other's hand, rather than un- 
dergo the slow torture inflicted upon otliers. 

Lieutenant Grummond's body was on the road between 
the two extremes, with a few others. This was not far fl-om 



APPENDIX. 377 

five miles from the fort, and nearly as far from the wood- 
train. Neither its own guard nor the detachment could by 
any possibility have helped each other, and the train vvas in- 
cidentally saved by the fierceness of the fight, in the brave 
but rash impulse of pursuit. 

The ofiBcers, who fell, believed that no Indian force could 
overwhelm that number of troops, well held in hand. 

Their terrible massacre bore marks of great valor, and has 
demonstrated the force and character of the foe ; but no valor 
could have saved them. 

Pools of blood on the road and sloping sides of the narrow 
divide showed where Indians bled fatally ; but their bodies 
were carried off. I counted sixty-five such pools in the space 
of an acre, and three, within ten feet of Lieutenant Grum- 
mond's body. Eleven American horses and nine Indian 
ponies were on the road, or near the line of bodies ; others, 
crippled, were in the valleys. 

At the northwest or farther point, between two rocks, and 
apparently where the command first fell back from the val- 
ley, realizing their danger, I found citizens James S. Wheat- 
ley and Isaac Fisher, of Blue Springs, Nebraska, who, with 
" Henry Rifles," felt invincible, but fell, one having one hun- 
dred and five arrows in his naked body. The widow and 
family of Wheatley are here. 

The cartridge shells about them told how well they fought. 
Before closing this report, I wish to say that every man, 
officer, soldier, or citizen who fell received burial, with such 
record as to identify each. 

Fetterman, Brown, and Grummond lie in one grave ; the 
remainder also share one tomb, buried, as they fought, to- 
gether ; but the cases in which they were laid are duly 
placed and numbered. 

I ask the General Commanding to give my report, in the 
absence of the Division Commander, an access to the eye 
and ear of the General-in-Chief. The Department Comman- 
der must have more troops; and I declare this, my judgment, 



378 ABSARAKA. 

solemnly, and for the general public good, without one spark 
of personal ambition other than to do my duty daily as it 
comes ; and whether I seem to speak too plainly or not, ever 
with the purpose to declare the whole truth, and with proper 
respect to my superior officers, who are entitled to the facts, 
as to scenes remote from their own immediate notice. I was 
asked to " send all the bad newsy I do it, so far, as far as I 
can. 

I give some of the facts as to my men, whose bodies I 
found just at dark, resolved to bring all in, viz. : 

Mutilations. 

Eyes torn out and laid on the rocks. 

Noses cut oflf. 

Ears cut oflf. 

Chins hewn off. 

Teeth chopped out. 

Joints of fingers cut off. 

Brains taken out and placed on rocks, with members of 
the body. 

Entrails taken out and exposed. 

Hands cut off. 

Feet cut off. 

Arms taken out from socket. 

Private parts severed, and indecently placed on the person. 

Eyes, ears, mouth, and arms penetrated with spear-heads, 
sticks, and arrows. 

Ribs slashed to separation, with knives ; skulls severed in 
every form, from chin to crown. 

Muscles of calves, thighs, stomach, breast, back, arms, 
and cheek taken out. 

Punctures upon every sensitive part of the body, even to 
the soles of the feet and palms of the hand. 

All this does not approximate the whole truth. Every 
Medical Officer was faithful, aided by a large force of men, 
and all were not buried until Wednesday after the fight. 



APPENDIX, 379 

The great real fact is, that these Indians take alive when 
possible, and slowly torture. It is the opinion of Dr. S. M. 
Horton, Post Surgeon, that not more than six were killed by 
balls. Of course the whole arrows, hundreds of which were 
removed from naked bodies, were all used after the removal 
of the clothing. 

I have said enough. It is a hard but absolute duty. In 
the establishment of this post, I designed to put it where it 
fell heaviest upon the Indians, and therefore the better for 
the emigrants. My duty will be done when I leave, as or- 
dered, for my new Regimental Headquarters, Fort Casper. 
I submit herewith list of casualties, marked A. 

I shall also, as soon as practicable, make full report, for 
the year 1866, of operations in the establishment of this new 
line. 

I am, very respectfully, 

Your obedient servant, 
(Signed) Henry B. Carrington, 

Colonel 18th U. S. Infantry, 

Commanding Post. 

The following note was sent to Captain Ten Eyck, in 
answer to message of his courier that he could see nothing 
of Fetterman. 

Fort Phil Kearney, Dacotah Territory, 

December 21st, 186G. 
Captain T. Ten Eyck. 

Forty well-armed men, with three thousand rounds, ambu- 
lances, etc., left before your courier came in. You must 
unite with Fetterman. Fire slowly, and keep men in hand. 
You would have saved two miles toward the scene of action 
if you had taken Lodge Trail Ridge. I order the wood-train 
in, which will give fifty men to spare. 

(Signed) Henry B. Carrington, 

Colonel Commanding. 



380 APPENDIX. 

Note. — The reports of the Secretaries of War and the 
Interior to Congress in February, 1867, made up from loose 
private letters and speculations, without knowledge of the 
facts, contain one private letter dated Fort Phil Kearney, 
December 28, 1886, which demands correction while a de- 
serving officer is still living. 

That letter represents Captain James W. Powell as going 
to the relief of Fetterman and the rescue of the dead. Cap- 
tain Tenodore Ten Eyck was the officer who gallantly per- 
formed that duty. 

Captain Powell did not leave the stockade. Captain Ten 
Eyck also accompanied his colonel to the field the next 
morning for the rescue of the remaining dead, at the close 
of an officers' meeting, in which Captain Powell advised 
against the movement as endangering the entire garrison 
and post. 

(See Official Report.) H. B. C. 



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4«72 




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J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY, 

715-717 market street, 
philadelphia, pa. 



BATTLES OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 

By COL. HENRY B. CARRINGTON, U.S.A., M.A., LL.D. 

Witli 40 Maps. Glotbi $6.00 1 Sheep, $7.60 ) Half Calf or Morocco, $9.00 1 
Half Bassia or Fall Morocco, $12.00 ) Full Bussia, $16.00. 

Published by A. S. Barnes & Co., New York, Chicago, 
and New Orleans ; London Depot, Hodder & Stough- 
TON, No. 27 Paternoster Row; Liverpool Depot, Wm. 
Howell, 26 and 28 Church St. 

" To me, at least, it will be an authority." — Ex.-Pres. Woolsey. 

" Fills an important place in history not before occupied." — Hon, 
W. M. Evarta, N. Y. 

" Will find a place in all public and private libraries." — Hon. A. F. 
Perry, Ohio. 

" The maps themselves are a history invaluable." — Henry Day, 
Esq., N. Y. 

" An entirely new field of historical labor. A splendid volume."— 
Hon, Geo. Bancroft. 

" It is an absolute necessity in our literature." — Benson J. Loating, 

"The maps are just splendid." — Adj.-Gen, W, L, Stryker, N, J, 

" The book is invaluable." — W, L. Stine, Esq. 

" Will give to the author enduring fame." — Hon, B, Oratz BrowUf 
Miaaouri. 

"It is a monument of natural history." — A. Rochambeau, Paria, 
France, 

" No man can comprehend the American Revolution without it." — 
Chaa, E. Pearce, Esq., Miaaouri. 

" The most accurate and impartial criticism on military afiTairs in 
this country which this century has produced." — Army and Navy 
Journal. 

" Fills in a definite form what has been a somewhat vague period of 
military history." — Gol. HamUy, Queen'a Staff College, Eng. 

" The descriptions of battles are vivid. The actors seem to be alive, 
and the actions T&a\."—,Rev. Dr. O'Crane. 

" The whole volume is written with military precision and accuracy, 
and covers, completely, an important ground which has never been 
described before in any similar manner. There are plenty of maps 
and an exhaustive index." — New York Ltdej)endent. 



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